


Of cowboyboots and soccer

by makerofaqueen



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan
Genre: Allergies, Ballroom Dancing, Conchell, Depictions of Abuse, Drive In Movie, First Kiss, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Football | Soccer, Gay Love, High School, Kidnapping, M/M, Mortal AU, References to Smut, Sickness, Slight Homophobic Slur, Smut, Underage Drinking, first time implied, gay relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-18
Updated: 2017-09-17
Packaged: 2018-11-15 17:42:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 42,135
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11235996
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/makerofaqueen/pseuds/makerofaqueen
Summary: Mitchell moves to a new town just as he's about to start his senoir year of high school. Watch what happens.





	1. Chapter one

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so you'll have to forgive me for this. I'm still not sure if this is post-worthy but after anon practically screamed at me to post it anyway (they used caps and everything, it's on my tumblr) I decided that, why the hell not?

Mitchell had spent the better part of his summer sulking indoors. He hated his new hometown. Why his parents had decided to move from New York to the most rural small town of fucking whatever this was he couldn’t fathom. Yeah, sure, his mom had been offered a great job, but she had that in New York already. And sure, this place was maybe nice once they retired, but they weren’t _that_ old. In fact they had had him while they were still in college so they were quite young as parents were concerned.

He had been told to come half an hour early to school to meet up with his teacher for the first period and get his papers signed before the day started. When he got to the front door he froze. There was a large sign on the door that reminded students that they were prohibited from bringing nuts into the school buildings.

Fuck.

He had already been _so sure_ that in this little pothole of a town him being open about his sexuality would sure as hell get him bullied like shit but this as well? They might as well shoot him on the spot.

Mitchell had, of course, contemplated trying to hide that he liked boys but he’d realized there wasn’t any chance in hell that would work out. He’d never been straight and being gay was such a big part of his personality, he didn’t even know how to try and suppress it.

So yeah, he was already nervous when he sat down in the principal’s office to go through his schedule, get his locker assigned and stuff like that and he couldn’t keep from fidgeting when the teacher introduced him and sat him down next to the cutest guy he had ever seen and who also looked straight as hell. Shit. This year was going to be rough.

 

\---------------------------

 

When Connor came to school on his first day of his senior year of high school what people was talking about wasn’t what they had been doing that summer, no, what they were talking about was the new signs that were posted on all the doors and on all the bulletin boards. He squinted at one of them before he turned to his friend, Will: ‘What does it say?’

‘Did you even try?’

‘Of course I tried. I know it’s something about prohibited, but do you really wanna stand here all day while I decipher the rest of it?’

‘You can read prohibited but not the rest?’

‘No, I just looked at the picture,’ Connor admitted and pointed at the big red ring with a red line across it.

Will sighed and rolled his eyes. ‘It’s just a reminder that we can’t have anything with nuts in it at school during this year because of allergies. You know, like the letter they sent home over the summer.’

‘Oh, right, I remember.’

‘You do?’

‘Don’t sound so surprised.’ Connor rolled his eyes and then jutted his chin towards the sign. ‘Why do you think that is?’

Will shrugged. ‘My best bet would be a new student, poor soul has an uphill battle from the beginning. People take their Snickers seriously.’

‘People are idiots,’ Connor said as they walked to their first class of the day.

 

\-------------------------------

 

They did have a new student. In their class, no less. He was rather pale, like he hadn’t been out that much during summer. He had strawberry blond hair sticking out from under a black beanie, a pink t-shirt and skinny jeans over white Converse all-stars. The poor guy seemed nervous, he was fidgeting from foot to foot while their teacher introduced him. ‘This is Mitchell, he’s from New York. He’ll be joining us for senior year. Mitchell, you can take the empty seat next to Mr. Stoll.’

Connor pointed at the seat next to him. Mitchell made his way over but just as he sat down one of the students piped up: ‘Is he the reason we’re not allowed to have peanuts anymore?’

‘I’m not at liberty to say,’ the teacher said off-handedly and proceeded to start the lesson.

The two guys sitting in front of them had been whispering to each other. Now they turned around and gave Mitchell disdainful looks. One of them, the object of Connor’s utter hate, said in a low voice: ‘Hey, fag…’

Connor watched Mitchell push up his thick-rimmed hipster-glasses to pinch the bridge of his nose before sighing and answering: ‘Yeah?’

‘You’re a fag, right?’

Mitchell narrowed his eyes. ‘What gave me away? Was it the make-up, or the pink shirt, or the pride-bracelet my parents gave me for Christmas or maybe the pins on my bag? Or, do you just have a really good gaydar? Either way, kudos for being so fucking perceptive.’

The guy smiled maliciously at Mitchell. Connor felt an urgent need to wipe that smile off his face: ‘David, you know what they say, right?’ Connor said with a smirk. David looked at him questioningly. ‘It takes one to know one.’

‘Look who’s talking,’ David growled.

‘As I said,’ Connor stated with a shrug.

Mitchell gave him a thankful look but David made a move as to punch Connor. Connor put his hands up and smirked. ‘Ah, ah, ah, you don’t want to punch your dad’s star player, David. Not at the beginning of the season. That’s probably gonna ground you for the whole semester.’

David seemed to ponder this fact for a moment before he sat back in his chair. He turned back to Mitchell. ‘So, are you the reason we can’t have peanuts in school?’

Mitchell closed his eyes for a couple of seconds before he looked at David with a frown: ‘Wouldn’t you like to know?’

David fished up a Snickers bar from his pocked and tossed it into the air before catching it again. Mitchell watched him with a blank expression on his face. ‘So if I opened this, you wouldn’t get sick?’

‘Why don’t you open it? See what happens?’

‘What did you expect him to do, run screaming and hide at the mere sight of that?’ Connor asked.

David got bored with the lack of reaction from Mitchell so he put the bar back in his pocket. As soon as he turned around Mitchell let out a deep breath and slumped in his seat. He had seemed so confident but Connor saw that his hand which was skimming the outline of his jeans pocket was shaking. The guy had been terrified.

Connor tore off a piece of paper and wrote: ‘U OK?’ which he slid over to Mitchell. The other boy just looked at him and nodded, then he wrote: ‘Thanks.’ Connor squinted at the word for a few seconds before giving him a thumbs-up.

 

\------------------------------

 

‘I fucking hate high school,’ Mitchell said when they took their seats in the cafeteria. None of Connor’s friends had joined them yet.

‘I can’t imagine switching schools in senior year,’ Connor admitted. ‘Why the hell did you move here anyway? This little place is a shit-hole. New York must have been so cool?’

‘Yeah. Well, my mom got a new job and I tried to get her to let me stay in town because I’m going to college there next year anyway but she was adamant that I come with them. They both were. Said they’d missed me too much.’

Connor took a bite out of his sandwich. ‘You have two moms?’

‘Uh-huh. Guess that makes us the new token gay family, right?’

Connor laughed. ‘Hey, your mom doesn’t happen to be the new sheriff, is she? Just, my dad works administration at the precinct and he said that there was this new, totally bad-ass lesbian sheriff starting this summer.’

‘She’s bi, actually. My other mom’s the lesbian.’ He opened his lunch box and winced. ‘Great, a salad. Thanks mom. You know, when they say they don’t want me to eat the cafeteria food the least they could do is pack me something good.’

‘Well, I do suppose PB&J’s are out of the question,’ Connor pointed out.

Mitchell chuckled. ‘I suppose. Thank you, for back there, anyway.’

‘You looked like you were about to punch him if he opened that thing.’

‘I wouldn’t have had time,’ he muttered quickly. ‘Uhm… If anything ever happens… My moms say I have to tell people… I always have two epi-pens in my pocket and a couple in my back-pack. Just, pull the blue cap off, stab me in the left thigh with orange end and hold for a little while. Through the pants.’

‘Button, stab. I think I can remember that. Shouldn’t I, like, call the ambulance or something?’

‘Yeah, but stab me first. They’d never get here in time. Also, I’m probably going to argue that I feel fine and don’t need a doctor. Don’t trust me on this. People have died because they haven’t seen a doctor after they’ve gotten their injection.’

‘Seriously? You’re literally putting your life in my hands here?’

Mitchell visibly deflated. ‘Sorry. I… I should go. I didn’t mean to… I should have known. This was a bad idea. I’ll be fine on my own.’

He stood up but Connor grabbed him by the wrist and pulled him back down again. ‘Idiot,’ he mumbled. ‘It’s just a little scary. I’m trying to be your friend here, ok?’

‘People are usually scared.’

‘Honestly, you should be some kind of bubble boy.’

‘I know, right?’

‘Can I see one of those?’

Mitchell took one of the epi-pens out of his jeans and handed it to Connor. He was twirling it between his fingers when Will and Cecil joined them. They introduced themselves while sitting down. Will’s eyes widened when he saw what Connor was playing with. ‘Ooh can I see that?’

Connor looked at Mitchell who just shrugged, so he handed it over. Will took it gingerly and eyed it with curiosity. Mitchell looked at Connor. ‘What is wrong with him?’

‘He wants to be a doctor,’ Connor said.

‘He’s creepy.’

‘Yeah, I know. You should have seen him last year when my brother broke his arm.’

Mitchell snatched the pen back and tucked it in his pocket. Will looked a little disappointed, but he turned to Connor instead: ‘Are you gonna help out at the try-outs tomorrow?’

‘I have to. Star-player, remember,’ he said and cocked his head. Will rolled his eyes.

‘You are never gonna make David forget that one, are you?’

‘Nev-er.’

Mitchell looked between them. ‘Oh, last year our school made this big show of posting a billboard of Connor here in town, describing him as the soccer team’s star player after his total score of thirty goals in a season. It was a new school record. David got jealous,’ Cecil said.

‘Earned me a scholarship,’ Connor said proudly.

‘Nice stare-down you gave him in class today, by the way,’ Will said to Mitchell.

‘Thanks. He was being an ass.’

‘That’s his default mode.’

‘He’s pissy because his dad is the school soccer coach but he’s benched because I’m better than he is,’ Connor said with a shrug. ‘If you’re friends with me you’re kind of putting yourself in his line of fire.’

‘I think my sexuality did that all by itself. You have a soccer team?’

‘We may be red necks but this is still a civilization,’ Will said. ‘Try-out’s tomorrow. You play?’

‘Yeah, back in New York. I have a scholarship for NYU and I was afraid I’d lose it if I couldn’t play this year.’

‘No way!’ Connor said. ‘That’s where I got mine.’

‘Cool. I can show you around town.’

‘Come to the try-outs tomorrow. If you’re that good we could use you on the team.’

‘Definitely.’

 

\-------------------------------

 

Connor ended up driving Mitchell home when they realized he lived on the way to Connor’s house from school. He turned the car off and they sat there for a while before Mitchell said: ‘So, do you like wanna come in or…?’

‘Uhm, yeah I do, but my brother is leaving for uni tomorrow morning so I want to say goodbye to him. But I thought maybe I could pick you up tomorrow before school so you don’t have to walk.’

‘Uhm, sure. Give me your number, maybe?’ Connor grabbed a pen and then he took Mitchell’s hand. The other boy yanked it out of his reach when he realized what Connor was about to do and took out his phone from his pocket. ‘Just punch it in here.’

Connor frowned. ‘Okay.’

Mitchell tucked his phone back in his pocket and said: ‘I’ll text you later so you’ll have my number. Uhm… see you tomorrow.’

‘Yeah.’

Mitchell sighed as he watched Connor drive off. He had been too close to an accident, he needed to watch himself better. Also, he needed to apologize to Connor for his behavior. Connor had scared him, that was all. He needed to know that.

His mother was in the kitchen when he walked in. She had changed from her sheriff’s uniform and was sporting a t-shirt and jeans. ‘Welcome home honey. How was your first day?’

He threw his bag on the floor by the door and sat down at the kitchen table. ‘Not bad, actually. I think I made a friend?’

‘Yeah?’

‘He even stood up for me when some jerk pulled that Snickers-joke, like I’ve hadn’t heard that one before. They had posted warning signs all over school and I mean, I guess that’s nice of them and all, but it was a little easy for them to draw the line between the new student and the fresh ban on peanuts.’ She squeezed his shoulder. ‘Anyway, his name’s Connor and he’s on the soccer team. They have try-outs tomorrow. I’m thinking about trying out.’

‘That would be good for your scholarship, honey.’

‘Are you cool with another year of rashes before I ship off to college and you don’t have to look at them?’

‘Do I have a choice?’ she smirked.

‘Not really.’

‘Then, yes.’

‘Thanks mom.’

He stood up and was just about to leave when she called after him: ‘I was thinking Chinese-food tonight but if you have try-outs tomorrow maybe that’s taking an unnecessary risk. How does pizza sound?’

‘Pizza is probably a wiser choice.’

‘Yeah, well, I’ll call your mom to bring some when she leaves from work. She’ll be here in an hour or so.’

‘Okay, I’ll be in my room. I have to unpack.’ He grabbed his backpack and took the stairs two at a time up to his room. He turned on his laptop for music and pulled his phone out of his pocket. He typed a text for Connor.

_There. Now you have mine. Sorry if I got weird in the car, it’s not just peanuts. Ink… hurts._

 

He settled for that and tossed his phone on the bed before turning to the box in front of him. He started filling his bookcase when his phone buzzed. He had a friend request from Connor that he confirmed and soon enough he got a new text.

**No Im sorry. I shouldnt have grabbed you like that.**

_You didn’t know. It’s fine. You just scared me, that’s why I got annoyed. At myself, not you, for not telling you._

**So were good then?**

_Yes, we’re good._

**So for tomorrow bring cleats and training clothes. I pick you up quarter to nine. Tryouts at four.**

_Aight. Thanks. See you tomorrow. I have to unpack my room now. There’s literally shit everywhere and I have cleats to find._

 

He finished unpacking his box and then went on to the next. When his mom called for dinner he had unpacked and folded three of them so he took them with him downstairs. They were already at the table. He hugged his other mom and sat down next to her. She looked him over. ‘How was school?’

‘Okay. Made a few friends.’

‘Your hair is getting long.’

‘I know.’

‘Come down to the salon tomorrow and I’ll get you sorted.’

‘I can’t. Not tomorrow, maybe the day after that.’

‘Mitchell’s got tryouts for the soccer team tomorrow after school.’

‘That’s great, honey.’

He nodded. ‘My friends are on the team. They said if I already have a scholarship then I would definitely be good enough to earn myself a place.’

‘So that means I have to go to more games this year.’

‘Yes. Both of you. I heard in school that people are fucking curious about the new, badass lesbian sheriff.’

‘Language,’ they said in unison.

‘Yeah, yeah. By the way, Connor’s dad works administration at the precinct. Stoll?’

‘Yes, that’s hilarious. His name is Stoll and he works at the police office.’

‘Seriously?’

‘Yes. Although, when I asked him about it he kind of looked like he didn’t get the joke.’

Mitchell shook his head. ‘He’s probably heard it tons of times before.’

‘Yeah that could be it.’


	2. Chapter two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mitchell tries out for the soccer team and the boys have a deep talk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sunday is posting day! Hope you all had a great week.

Mitchell got a text later that night.

**What are you still doing up? Go to bed.**

_Still looking for my cleats. Only have two more boxes to go through. What are you doing up? Go to bed._

**I am in bed and was almost asleep when the adhd part of my brain kicked in and now I cant sleep. Saw you were online. Wanted to tell you to go to sleep.**

 

Mitchell chuckled at that while he typed his response:

_What’s the adhd part of your brain telling you to do?_

**Its being friendly right now so its mostly just obsessively scrolling the gay side of tumblr. Last night it wanted me to build a death star out of lego. You should see it. Its magnificent.**

Mitchell furrowed his brow at the text. Okay, so he had not expected that and all he could think to type was:

_You’re gay?_

**Thats what you got from all that? I though it was clear today during our nice talk with David.**

_Not really, but my friends in New York has always said I’m dense._

**Id like to meet these people.** **They sound intelligent.**

_Ha ha._ _Oh look, cleats._

**Good. Now sleep. I pick you up in the morning.**

\---------------------------

‘So how long were you scrolling tumblr last night?’ Mitchell asked when he got in the car next to Connor that morning.

‘Until two am.’

‘Tired?’

He shook his head. ‘Not really. I’m saving that until we get to class. My ADHD is cool that way. As long as I keep moving I’m golden.’

‘Wow. The soccer team star player thing is actually starting to make sense.’

‘Right?’

‘I still want to see that death star though.’

‘Well I guess I just have to invite you to my room sometime then,’ Connor said with a smirk and a wink. Mitchell blushed. He wasn’t sure if Connor was flirting with him or just fucking around.

 

\--------------------------

 

‘Fuck! Shit!’

Connor looked up from where he was changing to see Mitchell standing in front of the mirror. ‘What are you trying to do?’

‘Put some contacts in. I think I’m out of practice or something because my hands are shaking. I haven’t used these all summer, I hate how they feel. They’re itching like hell.’

‘Are you allergic to them?’

Mitchell shrugged. ‘Probably.’

‘Do you really need them?’

Mitchell looked exasperated. ‘I can’t play in my glasses and I can’t see shit without them, Con.’

‘Okay, hang on.’ Connor pulled his shirt on and went over to Mitchell. He grabbed new contacts from where they were sitting on top of Mitchell’s bag and told the other boy to sit down while he washed his hands.

‘What are you doing?’

‘I’m putting your contacts in. I used to do this every day for Travis last year when he broke his arm. The guy refuses to wear glasses. Says it makes him look like a nerd. Now look up.’ Mitchell did as he was told. It was really unnerving not being able to see what Connor was doing before poking him in the eyes. He really was blind without his glasses. ‘There, now blink them in place.’ Mitchell did as he was told while Connor looked through his glasses. ‘Yikes, Mitch, you weren’t kidding. I actually feel a little nauseous.’

‘Told you,’ Mitchell said while he put a head band on to catch his bangs and pulled his too-long almost pink hair into a ponytail.

‘Where are all these sucky genes of yours coming from anyway?’

‘Beats me. I was adopted.’

‘Right. Of course you were.’

‘Well, at least I’m gay so they’re not gonna be reproduced.’

Connor put his hand on his hip and did a little twirl with the other finger while he said: ‘Are you sure it’s not just a phase?’

‘Fuck you Connor.’

Connor smirked when he said: ‘You wish.’

Mitchell blushed again, happy that Connor had turned his back to him to grab something from his bag and couldn’t see his face.

 

\------------------------------

 

They were standing in a crowd in front of the coach. He was giving them instructions on how the day was going to go down. Connor, Will, Cecil and a couple of other boys were standing next to the coach, eyeing them critically. Mitchell was nervous. He wanted today to go well, mostly because he wanted to be with his friends but also because, okay it was petty, but he wanted something to rub in David’s face. Today hadn’t been any better than yesterday. David was just a jerk, Connor said, but his dad was cool. ‘So, finally, I want you all to remember that this is a judgmental free zone. I will have no jokes about gender, sexual orientation, skin color, disabilities or other things that one can’t help. Do that and you will be benched.’

David was rolling his eyes behind his father’s back. Cecil punched him in the arm which made David wince and rub the sore spot.

They started running, three laps around the field. Connor set off at an amazing pace and Mitchell didn’t even try to keep up with him. Will came up next to Mitchell and panted: ‘He’s insane when you place him on a soccer field that one.’

‘Seriously. He’s not even sweating.’

‘I know. You see now why David can’t compete.’

‘Uh-huh.’

Halfway through lap three Connor actually came up on them from behind. He patted Mitchell on the shoulder when he squeezed between them. Will huffed. ‘Are you on lap four?’

‘Yes! What was I supposed to do, just stand there and wait for your sorry asses?’

‘Stupid ADHD boy,’ Will muttered. Connor laughed and flipped him off as he left them behind again.

They played some scenarios before the coach called it a day and they hit the shower. Mitchell hurried to take the contacts out and rubbed his itching eyes. When David tried to make a gay-in-the-shower-joke Mitchell just shrugged and said that without his contacts or glasses he couldn’t even see that tiny thing David was sporting between his legs. That shut him up for a while.

Connor had promised to drive him home. When they left the coach called Connor over, he left Mitchell to wait outside the dressing room. ‘What’s up coach?’

‘You played well with the new kid today.’

‘Yeah, we’re friends. He’s cool.’

‘I want to give him center midfielder. I think you two can do great things together there. He’s not nearly as fast as you are but he’s got an eye for the game. If you listen to his instructions you’ll be a great team. Maybe he can even help you break your own record.’

‘You think? He already has a scholarship for next year to NYU, by the way.’

‘I’m not surprised. Are you okay with him? Playing with him, I mean.’

‘Definitely. Ooh! Can I tell him?’

‘Yeah, sure. But keep it on the down low because I’m not posting the list until tomorrow morning.’

‘Cool. Yes. Promise.’ Connor jogged back to where Mitchell was waiting. ‘Hey, guess what?’ He slung his arm around the other boy’s neck.

‘What?’

‘You made the team. It’s not official yet, but it will be tomorrow when we get to school.’

‘Yes!’ His phone rang. ‘Hi mom, guess what! I made the team. Uh-huh. Sure. Yeah, I’ll ask him, hang on.’ He turned to Connor. ‘Mom wants to know if you want to have dinner with us. She’s bringing home Chinese.’

‘I’m always up for Chinese.’

‘Yeah, mom, he’s in. We’ll be home in like ten minutes.’

‘Can you really have Chinese?’

Mitchell shrugged. ‘It’s a gamble. However, we only have it when there’s nothing I can’t miss in school the day after and tonight we’re celebrating.’ They walked up to the car and got in. Connor started the engine. ‘Hey Con?’

‘Yeah?’

‘Shouldn’t you call your parents?’

Connor looked at him, startled.

‘Wait, why?’

‘Just… to let them know you won’t be home for dinner.’

‘Oh… I thought I… I could have sworn…’ he muttered as he took out his phone and dialed his home number.

‘Stoll?’

‘Hey mom, it’s Connor. I’m just calling to say that I’ll be eating at Mitchell’s tonight.’

‘Oh, you remembered to call! That’s great honey.’

‘Actually, Mitchell reminded me.’ he mumbled. He could hear her smile through the phone.

‘Well you called and that’s what matters. Do you have any homework?’

‘Do we have any homework?’ he asked Mitchell.

‘Just math, but you did already.’

‘No, just one and I did that with Will already during free period.’

‘Okay. Be home by nine, then.’

‘Yeah, mom. Bye.’

‘Bye honey.’

 

\----------------------------

 

Mitchell introduced Connor to his cop-mom when they got home. He was ever the gentleman, and shook her hand. ‘Kelly.’

‘Connor. I believe you work with my dad.’

‘Yes, I have heard so much about you.’

‘Nothing good I hope.’

She laughed. ‘Actually he calls you troublemaker.’

‘Good. I like to keep him on his toes.’

Mitchell took Connor by the hand and pulled him towards the stairs. ‘Come on, let’s go to my room.’

‘Your mom will be here with dinner in thirty minutes.’

They sat down on Mitchell’s bed, him against the wall by his pillows and Connor by the foot end. ‘So what does your other mom do?’

‘She owns that newly opened beauty salon down at the mall.’

‘My mom went there the other day to get her nails done. She said they were good. What the hell happened to your arm?!’

Mitchell, who had been absentmindedly scratching his arm looked at Connor and then down at his arm. He had a giant purple mark along his forearm. ‘Shit. I must’ve gotten that when I glide tackled that guy at tryouts today. I’ll be right back.’ He went into the bathroom but couldn’t find what he was looking for so he went downstairs. ‘Mom, have you seen my cortisone cream?’

‘Yes, it’s in the downstairs bathroom.’

‘Thanks.’

‘Oh, Mitchell honey, can you come here for a second?’ He peeked around the kitchen cabinet at his mom and sighed when he saw what she was holding out for him. She had a rather stern expression on her face. ‘I found _this_ in the bathroom after you left for school this morning. _What_ have we told you?’

‘That I have to wear it in case something happens and my throat swells up so I can’t talk,’ Mitchell mumbled, looking at his feet.

‘Exactly. It doesn’t do nearly as much use on the bathroom sink as it does around your wrist, honey. Now put it on and go keep your friend company. Shoo.’ Mitchell grabbed the bracelet and put it on his left wrist, then he frowned down at it. Wearing the metal chain with the dog-tag and the little red cross always made him feel like a freak. It was for a good cause, he knew that, if anything ever happened to him when he was alone in public he needed to wear it so people would know he had an epi-pen on him, but… He had been _so_ bullied over the years because of that stupid bracelet that by now he hated the sight of it.

Anyway, he put it on and then he went into the bathroom where he found his cream. He coated the rash in it and then put a giant band aid over it to keep it in place before he went back up to Connor. ‘Sorry you had to see that. It’ll be fine in a few days.’

‘What was that?’

‘Just a rash. I… I told you it wasn’t just peanuts.’

‘You’re _actually_ allergic to grass?’ Connor deadpanned.

‘Uh-huh.’

‘You’re stupid.’

Mitchell shrugged. ‘In my defense I was already hooked on soccer when that one sprouted. My moms didn’t want me to be miserable so they let me continue but they don’t particularly like the rashes. I don’t tell them about most of them because I don’t want to upset them.’

‘Isn’t it dangerous for you?’

‘Not really. It’s pretty much just itching and worst case scenario they burn for a couple of days. As long as I take care of them I’m fine.’

‘Do you have anything else I should know about?’

Mitchell fiddled with his bracelet and mumbled: ‘Do you want a list?’

Connor raised one of his eyebrows. ‘If you need to ask me that question it would probably be a good idea.’

‘I could write you one. It’s k.. kind of a lot.’

‘I’m dyslexic, you know that. Just tell me, I’ll remember. I have a good memory, for some things at least.’

‘You’ve texted me. Besides, you totally forgot to call your mom today.’

‘That’s different. Texting you is fun, but I mostly get by on autocorrect and hope. Remembering things about my friends is also fun. Calling my mom, not so much, that’s why the ADHD files it away. It’s really good at deciding these things on its own, without my involvement.’

‘Huh.’ Mitchell furrowed his brow while he was thinking. ‘Well, we can’t use fabric softener because I get rashes and any laundry detergent has to have that allergy-mark, know which one I’m talking about?’

‘Yeah.’

‘I can’t have dairy because I throw up. Like, you can literally set the clock for four hours after I’ve eaten something I shouldn’t.’

‘So you can’t have chocolate.’

‘No, but that’s also because I can’t have anything that may contain traces of nuts.’

‘Right. Anything else?’

‘I can’t have soy either. Or pineapple. I _love_ pineapple. That’s the most recent one, I’ve only had that about a year. Gives me blisters when I touch it.’ Mitchell took off his glasses for a moment to rub his eyes. He hadn’t put on any make-up after the tryouts. His eyes were still pink from the contacts. ‘Latex, like condoms,’ he said with a blush. ‘Pretty much any furry animal makes me sneeze and my eyes itch, the same goes for dust and I get a pretty decent hay fewer during spring. I take shots for that though so it won’t affect the soccer season. My immune system really isn’t much to brag about either.’

Connor just stared at him. Mitchell got a little shy and hid his face in a pillow. He peeked up at Connor but since he still hadn’t put his glasses on he couldn’t see the look on his face. Connor handed them to him because he felt a little weird talking to Mitchell when he knew the other boy couldn’t see his face properly.

‘Dude, I was kidding the other day but you seriously should come with a bubble. Or at least a warning label. Like, keep away from peanuts, fire and whatnot.’

Mitchell held out his arm with a bored expression and shook his wrist so the bracelet jingled a little, then he went back to hugging his pillow.

‘Oh.’

‘Yeah,’ Mitchell said. ‘You know… I can’t believe I’m telling you this, but I’ve got kind of a hard time making friends. It’s usually fine until people find out about… They’re always scared that something’s gonna happen and after a while they start looking at me like I’m broken. I hate that. I hate people questioning what I can and can’t do, or what I can and can’t eat, like I’ve lived with this for years, I think I know what I’m doing by now. The only ones I’ve been able to keep are the ones I grew up with.’

‘That’s just sad,’ Connor said while he messed with one of the holes on his jeans. Then he perked up. ‘Okay, promise I won’t question you, but know that _if_ I slip up it’s only because I care, okay? But, I can tell the guys the same if you want to.’

Mitchell nodded. ‘Yeah. Thanks. That would be awesome actually.’

‘Deal.’

They heard the door slam shut downstairs, indicating that Mitchell’s mom and dinner had arrived. Mitchell looked at Connor. ‘Hungry?’

‘After that game? Starving.’

‘Come on, then.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Come be my friend at tumblr, makerofaqueen.


	3. Chapter three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Connor has some problems and Mitchell get to meet his mom for the first time. She knows things the boys don't even know themselves yet.

One morning before school, Mitchell got a text from Connor’s phone. About two words in he realized it wasn’t Connor writing him. It said:

_‘Hi. I’m very sorry but Connor isn’t feeling well so he’s going to stay home today. He’s very sorry if it makes it hard for you to get to school. He’ll call you a little later. /Connor’s mom.’_

 

Mitchell frowned down at his phone before he dialed Connor’s number and waited. Suddenly there was a female voice on the other end.

‘Andrea.’

‘Hi, it’s Mitchell. You just texted me. Is… is he okay?’

‘Yes, he’ll be fine. He’s just not feeling well enough to make it to school today and he wanted you to know so you could get there on your own in time.’

‘Thanks. What’s… what’s wrong with him?’

Andrea was quiet for a while before she said:

‘That’s for him to tell you if he wants to. He said he’ll call you tonight so he’ll probably do it then.’

‘Should I bring any of his homework over?’

‘No, he’ll be okay tomorrow.’

Mitchell frowned at the phone when they hung up. What did she mean by that?

He had a little trouble focusing on school that day because his mind was always drifting to Connor and what may be wrong with him. When he asked Will about it he just shrugged and said nothing. Mitchell’s phone rang at eight o’clock that evening. His heart did a little jump in his chest that he totally, absolutely did his best to ignore when he saw who it was. He tried to steady his voice when he answered:

‘Hey, Con.’

‘Hi…’

‘I’m glad you’re calling. I’ve been thi… uhm, how are you feeling?’

‘Okay, I guess.’

Something in his voice made Mitchell’s stomach churn.

‘What’s wrong?’

Connor was silent for a while. Mitchell threw himself on his bed and looked at the ceiling while he waited for Connor to start talking.

‘I…’ he didn’t say anything more, so instead Mitchell said:

‘Look, you don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.’

‘I do, I just…’

Mitchell waited quietly for Connor to work up the courage to continue. Somehow he felt that his friend needed to tell him this but in his own time.

‘You know… You know how my ADHD makes me hyperactive, right?’

‘Yeah…’

‘And… some days I just need to rest. My… my body shuts down, like… like I can’t move and on the really bad days I can’t even talk.’

They were both quiet for some time. Mitchell while he mulled this over and Connor while he waited for Mitchell’s reaction. Finally, Mitchell asked:

‘And that’s what happened today?’

Connor’s voice sounded hesitant when he answered:

‘…yeah.’

‘Was it… was it really bad today?’

Mitchell felt sorry for his friend. He felt like he wanted to help Connor with this but he didn’t know how. Did he say he was sorry? Did he get him some candy, what? Finally, Connor spoke:

‘My therapist has made a grade from one to ten, ten being the worst. Today was a… a six, I think.’

‘You see a therapist?’ Connor sighed and Mitchell hurriedly continued: ‘No, I didn’t mean it like that. Just, you haven’t told me.’

‘We’ve only known each other for a few days. I… I don’t really like telling people that. I feel like a freak.’

’Hey, don’t say that. Look, Con… I get it. Okay? I do. Does it help?’

‘Yeah it does.’

‘Well then it’s a good thing. And… I’m just assuming here that it’s because of your ADHD.’

‘Yeah…’

‘Well, I see a doctor regularly for my disabilities and you see one for yours. We’re kind of alike, see?’

Connor actually chuckled at that.

‘I guess.’

‘So are you feeling better now?’

‘Yeah, I do. Totally.’

‘Good. Are you coming to school tomorrow?’

‘I am. Want me to pick you up?’

‘If you want to. I don’t want to be a nuisance to you.’

‘You’re not a nuisance, you’re my friend.’

‘Then pick me up,’ Mitchell said and smiled. Connor could hear it through the phone.

‘Okay. Good night, Mitch.’

‘Good night, Connor. See you tomorrow.’

‘Yeah. See you tomorrow.’

Andrea looked at her son when he entered the kitchen clutching his phone like it was a life-line. She was leaning against the counter, sipping her coffee while he rummaged around in the fridge, looking for something to eat.

‘Want me to make you anything?’ she asked.

‘No, I’ll just have a sandwich.’

‘Sit down, I’ll fry you up some eggs and bacon with toast. You need the energy, you haven’t eaten today.’ Connor did as he was told and while she cooked she said: ‘I heard you laughing in there earlier. You really bounced back good today.’

‘Yeah,’ Connor started, ‘Mitchell said something funny on the phone that I…’ he then realized what he’d said and silenced. Andrea just hummed.

‘Good to hear your friends can make you smile,’ she said and hid her smirk behind her hair. Connor only nodded and blushed.

 

\-------------------------------

 

The four of them were hanging out at Will’s house that Saturday. They had a pool so it had become the guy’s natural hangout spot. They also had a golden retriever but Will was kind enough to mostly keep the dog away from Mitchell and as long as they were outside he only sneezed when it came too close. Problem was it somehow sensed that he didn’t particularly want to be near it and had decided to win his love. When it escaped Will’s grasp for the tenth time and tried to climb on to Mitchell’s lap giving him a sneeze fit Will decided to just lock it in the house for a few hours and ignore the loud pleas from inside to let it join them.

 

\------------------------------

 

Their first soccer game his moms came to watch. They were sitting on the stands next to Connor’s parents. Whenever he did a glide tackle Kelly would hide her face in Sandra’s shoulder so she didn’t have to see it. When Sandra explained to the Stolls why she was so distraught Hermes merely shrugged and said that they couldn’t keep the boys from doing what they loved.

Mitchell didn’t score any goals, he rarely did, however Connor scored three which Mitchell practically dropped in his lap. What Connor didn’t know was that Mitchell had decided to get Connor a new record for this year. He figured about twenty games and he could probably give Connor an average score of two to three goals per game.

The coach had been right, Connor thought. Mitchell had an uncanny eye for the game and an ability to guide Connor into the exact right position where he only had to make an easy pass to him and Connor could score. The first time it happened Connor had been so shocked that he hugged Mitchell right there on the field.

‘It was like you just handed me a goal! You’re the best game director I’ve ever played with! That was amazing!’

‘It’s what I do best,’ Mitchell mumbled, blushing, a little embarrassed at Connor’s PDA on the soccer field. It stirred things in him that he was afraid to think about right now. He pushed those thoughts down into his mind for later, when he was alone in bed.

 

\--------------------------

 

Connor was obsessively tapping his fingers on the table in the hallway and tapping his foot at the same time. He had been staring at the same side in his textbook for ten minutes without being able to actually read it. Mitchell had been watching him from the corner of his eye. Now he closed his own book and looked at his friend.

‘What’s wrong?’

Connor looked up from his book.

‘Huh?’

‘Something’s wrong. You’re scatter-brained and skittish.’

‘Blame the ADHD,’ Connor muttered.

‘But right now you’re more ADHD than usual.’

Will looked up from his own book and eyed Connor critically.

‘Did you remember to take your meds this morning?’

Connor glanced away and furrowed his brow.

‘I… don’t remember.’

‘Look at me,’ Will said. He tried to lock eyes with Connor but the other boy kept breaking it. ‘Check your phone,’ Will said.

Connor took out his phone and opened the alarm application before he sighed.

‘Probably not. This thing didn’t ring this morning. I must have turned it off in my sleep somehow.’

‘You take meds?’ Mitchell asked. Connor blushed and looked down into the table when he nodded.

‘Yeah, between a therapist and meds I’m that messed up,’ he muttered under his breath. Mitchell wasn’t supposed to catch that but he did. Seriously, the boy had ears like a bat. It was probably due to having such poor eyesight, Connor mused.

‘That’s just bullshit,’ Mitchell said.

Will had gone back to his textbook and wasn’t paying them any attention. Connor just looked at Mitchell and shook his head.

‘I take pills so I can function somewhat like a normal human being, Mitch. If that isn’t messed up then what is?’

‘Hey, you’ve seen the literal fucking pharmacy that I carry around in my backpack on a daily basis. I think as far as medicine go, I’ve got you beat.’

‘But mine’s for my brain. I think that’s a little worse.’

Mitchell just shook his head and then he leaned in to give Connor a hug. Connor wasn’t prepared for that so he blushed profusely and tried to hide it by starting to pack his bag.

‘What are you doing?’ Mitchell asked.

‘I have to get home. My meds are there and anyway I can’t focus like this.’

‘I’ll drive you,’ Mitchell offered. ‘I don’t like you driving in this condition. You’re not focused.’

‘Are you sure? We’ll miss history.’

‘Yeah, but what good does history do us if you’re like this? We can go get your meds and be back for math this afternoon.’

‘To be honest I won’t be okay for math either. At this point I might as well stay home for the day.’

‘Then I’ll keep you company. I can afford to lose some of my attendance points.’

‘Okay. If you say so.’

 

\--------------------------

 

Connor’s mom was at home when the boys entered the house. She looked confused that they were home so early.

‘Hi mom. Sorry I’m skipping school,’ Connor said when he saw her. Her expression softened. She knew her son wouldn’t skip school if it wasn’t for a good reason. He might hate it, but at least he tried.

‘What happened sweetie?’

‘I forgot to take my meds this morning,’ he mumbled, more than a little ashamed of himself. ‘Mitchell drove me here. He didn’t want me to drive myself.’

‘Clever boy.’ She turned to Mitchell. ‘Nice to finally meet you, Mitchell. I’ve heard so much about you.’

‘Really?’

Mitchell looked at Connor who blushed and looked away. He couldn’t concentrate on trying to play it cool when he hadn’t taken his meds. Andrea smirked.

‘Yes, really.’

‘Well, it is nice meeting you, too.’

‘Do you boys want something? Did you eat lunch?’

‘Yeah just an hour ago,’ Connor said. ‘We’ll grab something if we want it, mom, don’t worry.’

He grabbed Mitchell by the hand and pulled him up the stairs and into his room. It was surprisingly neat in there. He had a giant pride flag pinned to one of the walls and the aforementioned death star was sitting on his desk. Mitchell walked up to it to have a closer look. Connor was fumbling with his dispenser. It was one of those clever things that had a little container with every day of the week marked. It was supposed to help him remember.

Connor took his pills and swallowed them with a mouthful of water while Mitchell was looking at his desk. He’d never liked it when people watched him take them. Taking medicine to help him handle his own brain made him feel like a freak. Mitchell, fortunately, had enough tact to not look at him. He could relate. It wasn’t until he heard Connor put his dispenser down that he turned around and smiled at him.

‘This is really cool.’

‘The death star? Told you.’

Mitchell nodded and made a point to look around.

‘To be honest… I didn’t think your room would be this neat.’

‘It helps my focus if it isn’t cluttered. Something my therapist suggested and it seems to work.’

Connor sat down on the bed and Mitchell sat down beside him. Having the other boy this up close made Connor’s mind twist in dangerous ways and he didn’t quite know what to do with himself. Fortunately Mitchell saved him.

‘So… now what? You can’t focus on school work so you’re going to have to entertain me.’

‘Entertain you?’

‘Yeah. Entertain me. We can’t sit here all day and stare at the wall.’

‘Then how about I kick your ass at Mario Kart?’

‘Is that a bet? You’re so on.’

 

\----------------------------

 

Mitchell came home from school one day and handed Kelly a note from his substitute teacher, then he sat down and rested his head in his folded arms on the table.

‘What is it?’ she asked without looking him while she skimmed through the paper.

‘We’re taking a field trip to a veterinary clinic tomorrow. The sub said it’s compulsory but obviously I need you to get me out of it.’

Kelly frowned.

‘No problem, sweetie. I’ll write you a note you can bring tomorrow.’

‘Thanks.’

He didn’t say anything more but Kelly sensed something was wrong. She sat down opposite him at the table.

‘What’s wrong, honey?’

Mitchell sighed.

‘I just… Why am I like this? I hate not being able to do everything my friends can. They’ll all go and then they’ll talk about it and I’ll be the only one who can’t.’

‘I know, sweetie, I wish I knew too. I mean, you can go if you want and we’ll let you stay home for a few days afterwards.’

‘No. I’ll just get sick. It’s not worth it.’

‘Okay. I’ll put the note on the table before I leave work in the morning.’

‘Thanks. I got some homework, I’ll be in my room.’

‘Okay. Dinner in an hour.’

Mitchell ran up the stairs and sat down on his bed where he opened his laptop. He had an essay to edit and he’d already procrastinated enough. It was due in a couple of days so he had to get to it. His phone buzzed after half an hour, just as Mitchell was finishing up.

 

**What did your mom say about the field trip?**

_She’ll write me a note to get me out of it. It’s been done before. Once in middle school our class took a field trip to a farm. Can you imagine what that would’ve been like?_

**I can imagine it would have involved a lot of sneezing.**

_Well, you’re probably not wrong._

**This may be my dyslexia messing with me but you seem a little off.**

_It’s not your dyslexia. I’m just a little bummed about missing out. It would have been really_

_cool to go but I know I wouldn’t have been able to enjoy it. That kind of sucks._

**Im sorry. I can take lots and lots of pictures for you.**

_Thanks, I guess. You know what, I’m sorry. It’s not your fault I can’t go, I shouldn’t dump my_

_problems on you._

**Isnt that what friends do?**

_Well… yeah, I guess. Thanks for letting me do that, then._

**Any time Mitch. Are you ok?**

_Yeah, I guess. Thanks, Con._


	4. Chapter four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The boys take a field trip and Mitchell gets a call from his oldest friend.

The following day Mitchell walked up to his substitute teacher and handed him the note from

his mom. The teacher read it and frowned.

‘You do realize this is compulsory for your grade, right?’

‘Yes, but as the note clearly states it’s hazardous for my health. Look, we’re not just talking

about an itchy nose here. I’ll be down for days afterwards.’

‘I’m sorry but I can’t accept this. It’s just allergies, you’ll be fine. If you really want to get out

of this you need a doctor’s note.’

‘And where am I going to get that in two hours?’

The teacher shrugged and left Mitchell standing in the hallway, feeling empty inside. He walked up to one of the benches and sat down before he started going through the contents of his medicine bag. He found enough stuff so he knew he’d get by during the afternoon but tomorrow would be hell. Mitchell took up his phone and called Kelly. When she didn’t answer he left a message and then he called Sandra but he knew on beforehand that she didn’t have her phone on her while she worked. She used to check it during lunch, however, but that didn’t leave them much time to try and get in contact with his new doctor.

When he joined Connor, Cecil and Will for lunch Connor frowned at him. ‘You look… defeated. What’s wrong?’

‘The sub didn’t accept the note from my mom. I need a note from a doctor if I’m going to get out of this field trip without an F on my report card. There’s no way in hell I’ll get that in an hour and a half so I’m going to have to go with you guys.’

‘Can’t you call your doctor on your own?’

‘I don’t even know what my new doctor’s called, Will. My moms picked one for me but I haven’t had my first appointment yet. That’s next week.’

Connor was staring down into the tabletop and muttering to himself. Mitchell watched him with a frown. After a few moments he realized Connor was counting down from one hundred to what would probably be zero. If he made it that far.

‘What’s wrong?’

When Connor didn’t answer him Will said: ‘He’s trying to control his temper so he doesn’t blow up. He only retreats like this when he’s really pissed off about something and right now I’m guessing he’s doing his best to not go and beat the living daylights out of our substitute.’

Mitchell tugged a little on Connor’s sleeve. When he still didn’t get a reaction he gently stroked Connor on the cheek. Connor’s eyes widened at the contact. He stopped counting at seventy two and slowly turned his head to look at Mitchell.

‘What?’

‘I’ll be fine, promise. I have my medicine bag with me. Don’t do anything stupid, please. I don’t want you suspended or worse, kicked out.’

Connor sighed and clenched his fists in his lap. Mitchell was staring him down and finally Connor buckled and dropped his gaze. The immediate crisis was averted but he could still feel anger pooling inside him. No one except his parents and sometimes Travis could make him bend like this. Mitchell truly was special.

‘Okay. But I’m not leaving your side.’

Mitchell nodded. ‘Thanks. I actually think I’ll need you around for this.’

None of his moms had called him back when they had to board the bus so Mitchell did go with them. He was fidgeting in his seat the entire bus trip and was even making Connor look calm and collected. That was definitely a first.

They entered the building and were greeted by a veterinary nurse. She showed them first into the sterile operating room and that went fine because it was so clean, then through the different wards and about halfway through Mitchell’s eyes and nose started itching. Connor gave him a package of tissues which he gladly accepted. He actually did rather fine until they got to the rooms where they kept the overnight guests and the nurse showed them a dog which had just had her puppies. Will was bouncing on his heels.

‘Look at the puppies! They’re soooo cute.’

Connor looked at the puppies, and then he looked at Mitchell who was standing a few feet away and sneezed into a tissue.

‘Yes, I know, he’s _way_ cuter,’ Cecil said with a smirk. Connor punched him in the arm. Will hadn’t noticed any of the exchange because he was too busy petting the tiny dogs.

‘Don’t say that out loud!’ Connor hissed. ‘What if anyone hears you?’

Cecil just shrugged. Connor rolled his eyes.

‘I get that you’re super perceptive and shit, Cec, but _please_ don’t tell him. Please. He’s way out of my league, it’s not even funny.’

‘I won’t, Con. But it’s about fucking time you get over your I’m-dyslexic-and-he’s-too-smart-for-me hang-up or whatever this is and did something about it because your pining is getting embarrassing to watch.’

They both turned their heads as Mitchell sneezed again. He didn’t look very good, all pale with pink eyes and nose.

‘I’m gonna go see if he needs anything,’ Connor said. Cecil just smirked at him. ‘Shut up,’ Connor grumbled. Cecil went back to watching Will who was knee deep in puppies by now.

‘Hey, you hanging in there?’ Connor asked when he reached his friend. Crush. Whatever. Mitchell looked at him with tired eyes.

‘Sort of. I’ll be fine.’

‘Yeah, in a few days, right?’

Mitchell sneezed twice.

‘Something like that.’ He wiped his nose and sighed. ‘How much longer is this going to take? I want to get home.’ He didn’t even care that he wounded winey.

Connor shrugged.

‘This place isn’t so big you know. We’ll be out in a little while. Do you need some support? You can lean on me if you want.’

Mitchell went to stand closer to Connor and leaned his cheek on Connor’s shoulder. Connor slung his arm around Mitchells back to offer him some additional support. David snickered when he saw this and elbowed his friends to watch.

‘Yes, the fags are cuddling. I get it, it’s hilarious,’ Connor muttered. Mitchell just sighed.

‘Don’t let them get to you, Con,’ he whispered. ‘What fucking difference does it make if we’re amusing to him?’

‘None what so ever, but I don’t like that he’s laughing at you when you’re sick.’

The class started moving towards the next room but Connor didn’t let go of Mitchell’s waist as they walked on.

‘Is the medicine making you tired, too?’

‘Yeah. It’s a side effect of antihistamine. The stronger the pill the stronger the side effect. These are kind of mild, I have these other ones that can knock me out completely.’ He turned his head to sneeze and blow his nose. Connor was still holding on to him which was kind of good because he was starting to get a little dizzy. When they stopped again he leaned his entire upper body against Connor and Connor had to suppress the smile that was threatening to overtake his face. That was real easy to do when Cecil turned around and smirked mischievously at him.  Connor was glad Mitchell currently had his eyes closed because that smile of Cecil’s would have given him away.

Mitchell fell asleep on Connor’s shoulder when they were back in the bus and Connor had to shake him awake when they were back at school. He practically carried Mitchell to his car and drove him home. Mitchell’s moms were both home and outraged that the teacher had made their son do this as well as worried about him and how he was feeling. Connor dumped Mitchell on the couch and put his backpack on the floor below so he had easy access to his medicines before he sat down beside him. Mitchell curled up under a blanket and gave Connor a tired smile.

‘Thanks for today. I don’t know if I could have done it without you.’

‘Go to sleep now, you look tired.’

‘I am, like hell. But I think I need to shower and change first.’ He sneezed into a tissue and frowned. ‘My head hurts.’

Connor chuckled.

‘Take your meds, shower and go to sleep. When do you think you’ll be coming back to school?’

‘Not tomorrow at least. We’ll see.’

‘Want me to drop off your homework tomorrow after school?’

‘That’d be awesome. Thanks.’

‘No worries. I have to get home, mom will be worried soon.’

After dinner when Connor was undoing his bed he saw he had gotten a text:

 

_Thank you again. You’re too good to me, I totally owe you one. Good night._

 

The day after Connor showed up at Mitchell’s house with a stack of books in his arms. He kicked the door as a knock and after a few moments Mitchell opened it. He was wearing a hoodie and a pair of sweats.

‘Nice to see you’re alive,’ Connor said with a smile.

‘Hey, come in.’

His voice sounded cracked, Connor noticed. He walked up to the kitchen table and dropped the books there.

‘You brought everything?’

‘I didn’t know whether or not you’d be in tomorrow. This is everything you’ll need to get done before Monday.’

‘Thanks. Honestly I was thinking of going but now I don’t really need to, do I?’

Connor shook his head, then he perked up.

‘Oh, I got you ice cream. If you want it, that is. Figured it would feel good for your throat. There really isn’t a lot of flavors that are dairy free.’

‘I know, it’s boring as fuck, usually. What’d you get?’

‘Vanilla with strawberry ripple, and then I also got strawberries and merengue to make it a little more fun.’

‘Wow, thanks. Do you… do you want to maybe watch a movie and have that with me?’

‘Sure, if you’re feeling up for it.’

‘I’ve been in bed the entire day, I can be upright for a couple of hours,’ Mitchell smiled. He grabbed two bowls and spoons before heading towards the living room and Connor joined him. They flopped down on the couch and Mitchell started flipping through Netflix. ‘Anything in particular you want to watch?’

‘Nothing that requires a lot of thinking. I didn’t fall asleep until three am last night.’

Mitchell turned on a semi-old action movie and started scooping up ice cream.

‘Any reason for that?’

Connor shrugged.

‘I was… watching the ceiling. Kinda lost track of time.’

‘ADHD reasons, then.’

‘Yeah.’

‘You don’t have to stay here to keep me company, go home and take a nap.’

‘Mom would never let me do that.’ Connor morphed his voice: ‘If you sleep now you’ll never be able to go to sleep tonight.’ He turned back to his own voice and continued: ‘Like I do that anyway.’

‘Nap here, then, or don’t. Your choice.’

Connor pondered that for a moment before he curled up under a blanket and closed his eyes. Mitchell went and got his schoolbooks to get started on some homework but he found himself watching his sleeping friend instead. Friend? Crush, more likely. Connor looked peaceful when he was asleep, in a way he never did when he was awake. He was always moving or doing something with his hands. Now he was lying completely still, breathing through slightly parted lips. Mitchell realized that he _so_ wanted to kiss those lips. God, he was in trouble.

 

\----------------------------

 

A few weeks into the semester Mitchell’s phone rang. He picked it up and smiled when he saw who was calling.

‘Hey, stranger,’ he answered.

‘Hey, Mitch. I’ve missed hearing your voice.’

‘I’ve missed you, Pipes.’

‘And yet you haven’t called.’

‘I know, I’m sorry. I’ve been so fucking busy these last weeks with a new school and a new team.’

‘And new friends. You aren’t forgetting about me, are you?’

‘You? Never.’

‘So, I was thinking, since you haven’t forgotten about me, would you want me to come down for your birthday? Dad is shooting at a location close to your new town and he asked if I wanted to tag along.’

‘Pipes! That would be great. I’d love that. Best present ever.’

She laughed.

‘Can I stay at your house? Otherwise I’ll just be stuck in a hotel.’

‘I’ll ask them but I hardly think that will be a problem. They would love to pamper you for a weekend.’

‘Perfect. I’ll text you the details. It will be so cool to meet your new friends.’

‘They’re idiots, but they’re nice.’

‘I stalked them on Facebook. They seem cool enough.’

‘They don’t… seem to think that I’m made of glass, which is nice.’

‘That’s great.’

‘Yeah, although Connor said I probably should come with a bubble when I told him everything.’

Piper laughed.

‘Can I meet him?’

‘Yeah, sure. He’s probably my best friend here.’

‘Is he cute?’

Mitchell could feel his cheeks heat up.

‘I’m not answering that!’

‘He is, then.’

Mitchell could hear the smirk in her voice.

‘Is he single? Is he gay?’

‘Yes. On both accounts.’

‘Then you’re a lucky boy aren’t you?’

‘Piper!’

‘Okay, leaving your love life for now…’

‘Thank you.’

‘Guess who asked me out yesterday?’

‘No way! Grace?’

‘Yeah way. He’s taking me out tomorrow.’

‘What are you doing?’

‘You know, the usual. Dinner and a movie.’

‘No, I wouldn’t know.’

She sighed on the other end of the line.

‘No, you wouldn’t, would you? Sorry, Mitch.’

‘Don’t worry about it. But you’re gonna have to give me all the details after, you hear?’

‘Well _of course._ Uhm, dad’s calling from the kitchen, I gotta go. I’ll text you!’

‘Have fun tomorrow!’

‘Oh I will.’


	5. Chapter five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The boys have a sleep over and Mitchell gets to show what a nerd he really is. Oh, and things start to stir. 
> 
> Also: references to physical... boy-problems. Enjoy.

‘Hey, Con, can I ask you a weird favor?’

Connor looked up from his homework. They were sitting in an empty classroom that Mitchell had charmed his way into. How he’d done that Connor didn’t even want to know. Somehow he always managed to get the teachers to do exactly what he wanted them to. Last month he had even managed to convince their history teacher to let Connor take the test orally. That was the first time Connor had gotten as good a grade as B in history. He knew the stuff, he was even interested in it, he just couldn’t express himself on paper. Hell, he couldn’t even read the questions correctly most of the time. Mitchell seemed to have understood that and Connor was happy to have someone realizing he wasn’t just stupid and who also seemed to be willing to fight for him. That Mitchell was a pure, straight A student helped a lot too because the teachers valued him.

They were just hanging out doing schoolwork during their free period. Connor’s grades had started slipping this year, despite his and Will’s best efforts. The stress of finishing high school made both his ADHD and his dyslexia act up and he needed an average of at least C’s to keep his scholarship. Mitchell, after a while, had agreed to help him. That had been Will’s task up until now but the two of them always ended up arguing because Connor just did not understand what the other boy was talking about most of the time. Will pushed him too much because he was too impatient and enthusiastic and Connor’s brain just short circuited when he was under pressure. But, after having been paired together on a presentation that had earned them an A, Connor’s absolute first, he was really proud of himself when he showed _that_ to his parents, Mitchell had agreed to help him with his schoolwork. Mitchell was a lot more patient than Will could ever be and Connor’s parents had actually wanted to start paying him when Connor’s grades had slowly gotten better and they saw how much time and effort Mitchell put into it. He had declined, but he had asked them to write him a letter of recommendation that he could use to get some extra credits on his grades. They had been more than happy to do that.

Connor finally found himself enjoying doing his homework because after all these years he _finally_ got it. It wasn’t at all as hard as he had made it out to be because contrary to popular belief he wasn’t stupid. He just… felt like it when he, despite what he knew, kept getting sucky grades. With Mitchell he was at least a somewhat functioning human being and he loved his friend for it. They had become best friends during the short time they had known each other, and Connor had realized he loved spending time with the other boy.

‘Yeah, what’s up?’

‘My parents have been talking about renovating my room for a little while, getting rid of that dusty old carpet in favor of a hardwood floor that would be easier to keep clean.’

‘Uh-huh?’

‘Only problem is I can’t stay at the house while the contractors are there, what with all the dust they’ll produce, and I thought maybe I could crash at your place for a week? Look, I know I’m asking a lot here and probably making things difficult for your parents but I really don’t have anyone else to ask. Will and Cecil both have pets, and…’

‘It’s not a problem.’

‘It’s not?’

‘How many times do I have to tell you this? You’re not a nuisance, you’re my friend. And besides, considering how well I’m finally doing in school my parents practically worships you. They would love to have you for a week.’

Mitchell looked at him quizzically. ‘Even with all the food restrictions?’

‘Even with anything.’

‘Oh… okay. Thanks.’

‘You were really convinced that I would say no, weren’t you?’

‘Well, yeah.’

Connor just shook his head. ‘So when do they want to start with this?’

‘As soon as possible I think. As it is now we’re vacuuming that thing once a day. It’s fucking annoying.’

‘Seriously?’

‘Yeah. You know that drawn out cold I had a few weeks back? Turns out it wasn’t a cold, it was the fucking dust in the carpet.’

‘Huh. Well, just give me a couple days heads up so I can tell them and they can do some shopping. Or, maybe you should go with us, make sure everything gets right.’

‘I think my moms would like that. They’re a little fuzzy about what I eat,’ Mitchell deadpanned. Connor laughed.

 

\--------------------------------

 

A couple of weeks later Mitchell moved into Connor’s room. Connor’s mom had asked if he didn’t want to stay in Travis’ room but Connor had pointed out that Travis’ room was a freaking mess and they would most likely hang out in his room anyway so they took Travis’ mattress and put it on Connor’s floor instead.

Connor ended up convincing Mitchell to take the bed and he would himself sleep on the floor because he was raised to be a southern gentleman. The first night, Mitchell woke up at around four in the morning. Connor was sitting up cross-legged on his mattress, scrolling through his phone. When Mitchell put his glasses on he could see that the other boy had been crying.

‘Con?’ Connor looked up at him. He tried to dry his face with his hands but he only managed to smudge the tears around. ‘Are you okay? What’s wrong?’

‘It’s nothing, I… I just had a nightmare.’

‘Doesn’t seem like nothing if you’re crying. Do you want to talk about it?’

‘Not really. It’s stupid.’

‘No, it isn’t.’

‘You don’t even know what it’s about?’

‘If its making you cry it’s not stupid.’ Mitchell patted the mattress beside him. ‘Do you wanna come up?’

Connor quickly scrambled to his feet and climbed into the bed, like he had been waiting for Mitchell to ask him that. Mitchell lifted the cover so he could slide under it and Connor settled with his head on Mitchell’s arm. He drew a deep breath.

‘Okay, so this is going to sound really weird, but sometimes I have dreams and they turn out to happen.’

‘Uh-huh?’

‘And I know you told me not to worry about you but I think you’re going to get really sick sometime soon. Just… watch yourself, okay?’

‘Worse than having a shitty sub making you go on a field trip and getting sick as fuck in the process?’

‘Yeah, worse. What happened with him, anyway?’

‘My moms decided to sue the school. We were offered a settlement and my college fund suddenly got a lot better, as for the sub… He’s currently in between jobs.’

‘Good. But we’re getting sidetracked. Promise.’

Mitchell smiled. ‘Yeah. I promise.’

‘Thanks. Can I… stay here for a while?’

‘As long as you want.’

‘Thanks.’

Connor settled on his side, still using Mitchell’s arm as a pillow.

‘You should have woken me up earlier,’ Mitchell mumbled into his back.

‘I didn’t want to. I thought… you needed your sleep.’

‘Yeah, well, so do you.’

‘I know. Sorry.’

‘I didn’t mean it like that.’

‘I know. Still. Goodnight Mitch.’

‘Good night.’

Connor closed his eyes. After a little while he heard the other boy sigh behind him, before he felt Mitchell’s arm wrap around his chest. Connor fell asleep like that, feeling totally safe in his friend’s arms.

 

\-----------------------------

 

Things got a little awkward when they woke up, still in bed together. This was mostly due to the fact that they were both teenage boys and as such they woke up hard. Mitchell was still pressed against Connor’s back with his arm slung around his chest. Connor woke up first and he could feel the other boy’s erection rubbing against him because for some reason Mitchell did not lay still when he slept.

It wasn’t unpleasant, that was actually the problem. It was a little too pleasant and Connor felt a tug in his gut at this thought. It would be too easy to turn around and kiss Mitchell awake, hoping the other boy would allow him to turn the whole thing into a steamy make-out session, maybe even touch him a little _there_ but he hadn’t got the faintest idea how Mitchell felt about him so he didn’t dare to do that. Instead, as the insecure little shit that he was, he slid out of bed and went to take a cold shower instead. Mitchell, unfortunately, woke up when he started moving and upon realizing his predicament, he blushed crimson, hiding his face in his pillow. Connor decided not to comment, he just said he was going to shower and left.

When he was in the shower he took care of his own problem, the thought of his best friend pressed against him in his mind. If Connor hadn’t realized he was in trouble before this, now was the time that it hit him with full force. He never used cusswords, not even to himself, but right there, in the shower, he wondered what the fuck he was going to do.

Mitchell still hadn’t moved when he came back into his room. He was lying in bed, under the covers, scrolling through his phone. ‘Sleep well?’ he asked when Connor had his back against him, browsing his wardrobe.

‘Yeah, thanks. Sorry if I freaked you out.’

‘Nah, I’m good. So what are we doing today?’

‘Homework or procrastination.’

‘Procrastination first, then homework. You still have half an essay on Zeus to write before Monday.’

‘Okay, then I’m going to need your never failing fashion advice because I’ve outgrown my suit and need to get a new one for the Christmas ball. We’re going to the mall.’

‘Aight. I have a suit but I could use a new shirt and a tie. Who are you taking?’

Connor shrugged. He knew who he wanted to take, but he was to chicken to ask. ‘I have weeks left to figure that out. It’s only November. I just want to get a new suit before they run out. The last couple of weeks before the ball people start going nuts. It’s a huge thing around here.’

 

\--------------------------------

 

‘So what are you doing next weekend?’

They had paused in their shopping trip to have lunch at the food court. Mitchell had gotten a pale purple shirt and a black tie with black patterns on it. Connor had a pastel green shirt and a dark green tie. They still had to pick him up a suit but that was next on their list.

‘I dunno. Why?’

‘My best friend from New York is coming over for my birthday and she wants to meet you guys. I figured we could set something up. Like, nothing fancy, just so you can meet. She probably wants to tell you all the embarrassing childhood memories we share.’

‘It’s your birthday next weekend?’

‘Yeah?’

‘Huh. I should get you something.’

‘No you shouldn’t.’

‘Yeah, like, I totally should. What do you want?’

‘Nothing.’

‘Alright, be stupid then. I’ll just ask your friend. Have you known her for a long time?’

‘Yeah, Piper’s my oldest friend. We went to kindergarten together. She knew me before all my shit started sprouting like dandelions in the sidewalk.’

‘Cool. I’m gonna ask her all sorts of embarrassing questions about you.’

‘Of course you are. You know, I can’t wait until I get to meet your brother. I bet he has all kinds of juicy shit on you.’

‘He does. You should brace yourself. He’s coming home for Christmas so you’ll probably meet him then. He mentioned a slide-show.’

 

\-------------------------------

 

‘It doesn’t look right. That’s not your fit, you’re too skinny. You need something with a slimmer cut.’

‘Like what? It’s just a suit.’

‘It’s not just a suit. It’s the last suit you’ll ever wear.’

Connor laughed. ‘Are you quoting MIB?’

Mitchell blushed. ‘I couldn’t help myself. We’re shopping for suits. Stay here, I’ll be right back.’

Connor chuckled at his friend. A couple of minutes later Mitchell was back and handed Connor a suit. He looked it over. ‘This isn’t my size. I’m a medium, not a small.’

‘You are what I say you are. Don’t stare yourself blind on the tag. If it fits, it fits, no matter what the size-tag says. Try it now. Here, I got you a shirt and a tie just so I can see how it looks on you. Put everything on and come out to show me.’

Connor called out after a couple of minutes. ‘It’s too small.’

‘No it’s not. What’s the problem?’

‘I can’t sit down with the jacket buttoned.’

Mitchell rolled his eyes. ‘You’re not supposed to. When you sit down you either unbutton the jacket or you take it off completely.’

‘Really?’

‘Really.’

‘Wow. Who would’ve known?’

‘How come _I_ know that who’s got two moms and you don’t? I seriously need to speak to your father about how he raised you.’

Connor chuckled from inside the booth. There was some shuffling and then he exited. Mitchell’s breath hitched, and he hoped his friend didn’t notice. ‘I can’t tie a tie-knot but you get the general idea,’ Connor said and handed Mitchell the tie.

‘Y.. you look great. I told you that would fit.’

‘I actually feel quite handsome.’

‘You are. Whoever you end up taking will be lucky.’

‘Who are you taking?’

Mitchell shrugged. He looked away when he said: ‘I’m not exactly someone people like to date, Con.’

‘Why not? What’s wrong with you?’

Mitchell eyed him from under his bangs. ‘Did you seriously just ask me that?’

Connor rolled his eyes. ‘No, but I mean… those aren’t reasons _not_ to date you, Mitch. Come on.’

‘Well, it’s not like I can go on a real date, is it? Like, dinner and a movie? I’ve never been to a movie theater. I can’t.’

Connor cringed. ‘Yeah, no, sorry. I didn’t think.’

‘That’s alright. I’ve asked you not to, haven’t I?’

‘I guess you have.’

‘Just… forget it. It’s not like I have to have a date to get in and I can’t even dance so…’

Oh! This was an opportunity Connor couldn’t miss. He pounced on it. ‘You can’t dance? Like, slow dance?’

‘No? When am I supposed to have learned that?’

‘Dad taught me and Travis when we were kids. He says it’s something every southern gentleman needs to know. I know! I’ll get him to teach you tonight.’

‘Uhm… okay.’

 

\---------------------------

 

Connor’s dad was having the time of his life. He ended up teaching Mitchell both to follow and to lead. It turned out Connor was excellent at leading but absolute rubbish when it came to following, so he figured his son could use the lesson too. By the end of the night they were both happily dancing away in the living room while both Connor’s mom and dad were watching from the couch. Hermes leaned in and whispered in Andrea’s ear:

‘Ten bucks says those two will be dating by Christmas ball.’

‘Are we betting against each other with our shared money?’

‘You’re right, that takes away the thrill of it. Alright. I’ll do the dishes for a week.’

‘Done. I don’t think it will take that long. Before the day of the ball, I win. The day of the ball, you win.’

‘Deal. But we can’t interfere.’

‘Of course not. You do realize that either one of them will have to ask the other to the ball, right?’

‘I know. I’m just counting on them being too shy to do anything else before they’re actually there, in the dark.’

‘You have no faith in our son.’

‘I do not.’

‘Neither do I. I do, however, have faith in Mitchell.’

Hermes watched them as Mitchell spun Connor around and caught him in his arms, dipping him down. Their faces were merely inches apart. Mitchell smiled widely when he straightened his back and let Connor go.

Hermes was starting to seriously regret this bet already.


	6. Chapter six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Piper comes to visit and Mitchell gets a huge surprise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You get an early update as I realized I'm not going to spend the entire sunday in a car. We're visiting relatives. Lucky for you this chapter was finished anyway!

That Thursday Mitchell moved back home. The renovation was done and the house had been cleaned up. The carpet was gone and his room had a polished hardwood floor instead. It looked great, now he just had to unpack all his things again. It was like he had never moved in in the first place.

It would be hard to sleep without Connor. After that first night it had become a habit of theirs to share his bed because it eased not only Connor’s nightmares but also his hyperactivity at night and he fell asleep a lot faster when he was focusing on Mitchell’s breathing instead of the world in general. Mitchell himself also slept better with company, he’d realized. It was nice to not be alone.

He was woken up at two am by a text.

**I cant sleep.**

_Have you been awake all night?_

**Yup. My adhd is giving me shit. Its been behaving too much with you here so now its taking revenge.**

_Try to just close your eyes and focus on your breathing._

**What do you think I been doing for the last three hours?**

_Well, at least you’re persistent. Hang on, I’ve got an idea. I’m calling you._

 

Connor sounded bashful when he answered:

‘Hi. Sorry if I woke you up.’

‘Nah, It’s okay.’

‘You sound tired.’

‘Well I _was_ sleeping.’

‘Now I feel like a dick.’

‘You _are_ a dick. You’re lucky I like those. Now be quiet. I’m not gonna talk either, you’re just going to listen to my breathing until you fall asleep. Close your eyes. Don’t worry, I’ll end the call when you’re asleep.’

‘Okay.’

Connor actually didn’t say anything else, he just lay there and listened to Mitchell breathe until he fell asleep. It didn’t take nearly as long as Mitchell had anticipated, maybe he was really tired. After about thirty minutes he said quietly:

‘Con? Con, you awake?’

Nothing. Mitchell smiled to himself and ended the call before he promptly fell asleep again.

 

\---------------------------

 

When Connor picked Mitchell up the following morning he was laughing.

‘What’s so funny?’

‘You know, I didn’t appreciate it last night but you totally made the best gay dick-joke I’ve ever heard.’

Mitchell smiled.

‘Right? And here I thought that went unnoticed.’

‘Gay dick-jokes never do, however I was more than a little distressed last night. Sorry I woke you up. I think I’ve gotten too used to having you around.’

‘Probably. You can call me anytime though. I don’t mind.’

They ended up skipping class that afternoon because Mitchell was picking Piper up at the airport. Connor didn’t really have any reason to go to his last class of the day if Mitchell wasn’t there so they took his car. Mitchell tried to argue that he should stay in school but Connor said they had chemistry and Mitchell was his lab partner. Connor didn’t trust himself to not blow anything up if he had to do his labs all by himself so for the safety of everyone he went with Mitchell to the airport instead.

A dark skinned girl with braided hair squealed when she came out of the departure doors. Mitchell opened his arms and she ran right into him, almost crushing him in her arms.

‘God I’ve missed you Mitch!’

A man that Connor could only assume was her father came out after her. He… was awfully familiar but Connor couldn’t place him.

‘Mitchell!’ the man exclaimed and pulled both the girl and Mitchell simultaneously into a hug.

‘Hey Mr. McLean.’

‘How many times do I have to tell you to call me Tristan?’

‘My moms would kill me if they heard me be that disrespectful.’

The man chuckled.

‘Hello, you must be the boyfriend,’ he said and offered his hand to Connor. Connor’s eyes widened and he blushed.

‘Uhm… we’re… a.. actually…’

‘Dad, stop it! He’s only teasing. Don’t listen to him. He’s been trying to get Mitchell a boyfriend since we were like, ten.’

Connor looked at Mitchell who blushed and appeared to find his converse highly entertaining.

‘Connor. We’re in school together.’

‘Ah. Well, I’m Piper’s dad. You two take care of my girl now and she has a ticket to go home on Sunday night. My people will pick her up in New York.’

‘Yes, Mr. McLean,’ Mitchell said before Piper started dragging him out of there.

‘By dad!’ she called over her shoulder.

She exhaled and visibly relaxed once they were all sitting in Connor’s crappy car.

‘Thanks so much for picking me up guys. He wanted me to take the production company’s car but this is way more incognito. I hate being at airports with him, it’s all cameras.’

‘Well, welcome to the shit-hole that is our home town,’ Connor said. It’s an hour to drive so sit back. On the left you have fields and on the right you have… fields.’

‘Wow.’

‘And that’s really all there is to it,’ Mitchell said.

‘Can we stop for lunch somewhere? Dad gave me money for food so I’m paying. All they gave us on the plane was those little bags of nuts that I was _not_ stupid enough to eat.’

‘Thanks, Pipes.’

‘We’re passing about four diners on the way. Good enough?’

‘Yeah.’

‘Ooh! Take the one that has the milkshake I can drink!’

‘Yes, Mitchell, you’re getting milkshake. I promise,’ Connor said with an amused chuckle. ‘Seriously, like I would ever stop anywhere else?’

Mitchell smiled widely and Piper watched the two of them with sparkling eyes. This would be an interesting weekend.

 

\-------------------------------

 

Connor dropped Piper and Mitchell off at his house. Mitchell looked at him through the open window.

‘You’re not coming in?’

‘Nah, I think the two of you should have the evening to catch up. I’ll see you tomorrow morning at the game though and maybe afterwards all five of us can go out for coffee so we can get to know Piper a little?’

‘Yeah, that’s a good idea,’ Piper agreed.

As soon as they were perched on top of Mitchell’s bed with a bucket of ice cream between them Piper said:

‘Okay so you cannot tell me that you don’t have a crush on that boy.’

Mitchell groaned.

‘Fuck Pipes, I can’t even deny it to myself any more. What the hell am I going to do?’

‘You’re going to ask him out. Oh! You’re going to ask him to that ball you were talking about. You said it yourself he doesn’t have a date yet.’

‘Yeah, but I don’t want _that_ to be our first date. Come on! I don’t even know if he likes me. We just happen to be the only two open gay boys in school. That’s more like a lack of other options.’

‘Not if you really like him.’

Mitchell looked down into his ice cream.

‘Well, I do. He’s like, the sweetest person ever, and his abs…’ Mitchell sighed.

‘Then there you go. It doesn’t have to be weird you know, just if he says no go back to being friends. A crush can’t break that.’

Mitchell sighed.

‘What would we even do?’

‘I dunno what there is to do around here. You’ll think of something.’

‘Okay, moving on from my non-existent love life. How’s your superman?’

‘He was a little bummed that I would be gone the entire weekend because according to him this is our one month anniversary but I’ll make it up to him on Monday.’

‘Is it your one month anniversary?’

‘I don’t know, Mitch. Do people really keep track of these things?’

‘I hear it’s supposed to be a big deal.’

‘Huh,’ Piper huffed. ‘Ah, well. He can’t keep me from seeing my best friend on his birthday. So, is it a big game tomorrow?’

‘Nah, it’s mid-season so not really. If our last meeting with these guys were any indication we’ll win quite easily so it should be fun to watch and the guys won’t be as cranky afterwards. Just a heads-up that they’re a little weird. Cecil doesn’t really talk unless he absolutely has to and Will wants to be a doctor so bad that I actually think he came into his boxers when I let him hold one of my epi-pens once. It was creepy.’

‘So… what you’re saying is you’re the normal one?’

‘God, that sounds so weird. _I’m_ the normal one.’

She pointed at him with her spoon.

‘Bet you didn’t see that coming, huh?’

 

\--------------------------------

 

After the game Piper was waiting for the boys as they came out of the locker room. She was talking to David, who apparently didn’t know who she was friends with, and he sneered at them when they appeared. Neither of them said anything, Mitchell merely waved at Piper to come join them. He slung his arm around her shoulders when she came up to him.

‘I think maybe that boy was flirting with me,’ she said.

Connor turned around and winked at David.

‘If you think he was, he definitely was. Subtlety has never been his thing.’

‘That’s David, remember I told you about him?’ Mitchell asked.

‘ _That’s_ David? God, Mitch, I wish I’d known. I could have been so much more unpleasant towards him.’

Mitchell started giggling.

‘Unpleasant?’

‘Angry, mean, hateful… unpleasant.’

‘I think Mr. Superman and his nice manners are rubbing off on you.’

‘You call her boyfriend Superman?’ Connor asked.

‘Yeah, he kind of reminds me of Captain America. You know, blonde, fit and well mannered.’

‘Huh. Then I can only assume that our poor David has no chance there, either?’

Piper only laughed.

The five of them packed themselves into Connor’s car and he drove them to a diner where they usually had lunch after games. When they had ordered Connor leaned his elbows on the table and said:

‘So, Piper…’

Mitchell hid his face in his hands because he knew what was coming. Piper only smiled that innocent, charming smile of hers that had both girls and boys fainting as she waited for him to continue.

‘…we are, of course, curious about what this boy have been doing all our lives. Care to share some stories?’

‘No,’ Mitchell grumbled.

‘Oh, come on Doe, this is like, a golden opportunity, here. You never tell us any details about your growing up.’

‘Because there’s nothing to tell, I was home and sick the entire time,’ Mitchell said into his hands. Piper only laughed.

Ten minutes later they were all laughing at the story of how when he was ten, Mitchell had found out that he was lactose intolerant because Mr. McLean had taken them out for ice cream and Mitchell had puked on him just minutes before he was supposed to audition for a role. Mitchell was blushing and trying to ignore them, focusing on his burger instead. Connor looked at him from across the table and Mitchell caught his sparkling eyes for a couple of seconds too long before he blushed again and looked down.

 

\--------------------------

 

Connor picked Mitchell and Piper up at Mitchell’s house later that day. They were gonna pick Will and Cecil up before doing some shopping and then going back to Connor’s house for a movie night and sleepover to celebrate Mitchell’s birthday. His parents had even agreed to stay the night at his mom’s parent’s house. Just as he pulled the car out of the driveway Connor swore, or, as close to it as he felt comfortable with:

‘Crap!’

‘What?’ Piper asked. Connor looked at her apologetically.

‘I got my dad’s debit card to do some grocery shopping while we were at the store but I forgot it at home. We don’t have any breakfast for tomorrow. You guys mind going back for it?’

‘Not really,’ Mitchell shrugged.

‘Do we have any choice?’ Piper asked.

‘Not if we want breakfast tomorrow.’

‘Well, let’s go then.’

When Connor got out of the car Piper unbuckled her seat.

‘Can I use your bathroom? I kinda forgot to go before we left.’

‘Sure. Do you guys want to bring your stuff in now that we’re here anyway? Save some room in the car for Cecil’s and Will’s stuff.’

Mitchell shrugged and grabbed his over-night bag before following Connor into the house. Connor ushered them into the house before he flipped the switch, lighting the previously dark house up and Mitchell’s jaw dropped.

‘SURPRISE!’

There, cramped into Connor’s living room were most of their class and the soccer team.

‘W.. what…’ Mitchell stuttered. Connor slung his arm around his shoulders.

‘Happy birthday.’

Will and Cecil came up to them at the same time as someone turned the music on. Mitchell vaguely registered that it was Will’s sister that called out:

‘Alright people we have drinks and snacks on the patio, now let’s get this party started!’

‘Happy birthday, dude,’ Will patted him on the back.

‘Thanks. What the fuck, guys? How did you…?’

‘You know, Pipes here said you were dense but honestly, this has been the buzz of the school for like two weeks so the fact that you haven’t caught on is a freaking miracle.’ Will said.

‘ _You_ were in on this?’ Mitchell turned to Piper who smiled and feigned innocence.

‘You should see the group chat,’ Connor said.

‘I’m good, thanks.’

‘I have a set of clothes for you if you want to change,’ Piper said. Mitchell looked down at his pink sweatpants and nodded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nope, the boys are not quite there yet ;) Sorry guys, I know it burns a little slow.


	7. Chapter seven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The party is in full swing. Some of them get to make out. Who? Stay tuned.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There are references to smut here. They are horny teenagers, after all. 
> 
> You, my friends, are getting another preemie because apparantly I will spend my entire sunday on a train. I do not trust them to have free wifi so Iäm posting today instead because you deserve better than to have to wait until monday.

He was doing his makeup in Connor’s room when the other boy came to join him, two plastic cups in his hands. Piper had brought a nice outfit for him and his makeup so he could make himself look decent. When she had been able to pack all this without him noticing he didn’t even know. He had put his hair up in a messy half up ponytail. Connor’s breath caught in his throat when he saw him.

‘I… uh… thought you might be thirsty.’

‘Thanks. What is it?’

‘Punch? Oh, you meant… nothing that should cause any trouble if I remember correctly, it’s only stuff in there that I’ve seen you eat. Frozen watermelon cubes, frozen strawberries, vodka, Sprite, and some of mom’s lemonade. I know you’ve had _that_ before. Okay, so maybe not the vodka, but Piper said that would be okay.’

‘How do you remember everything about me but we’re late for school like twice a week because your attention deficit disordered ass keeps forgetting to put on pants before you leave the house?’

Connor just tapped his temple as an answer. Mitchell took a sip of the punch.

‘Wow. Okay, yeah. That’s vodka alright.’

‘Was it too strong?’

‘Not if you’re trying to get me drunk. _Are_ you trying to get me drunk, Stoll?’

Connor blushed for a second before he composed himself and said:

‘Well it _is_ _your_ birthday party and you’re crashing here so you don’t have to go home drunk to your moms. So yeah, maybe a little bit.’

Mitchell sat down on the bed next to him with his cup in his hands. He took another sip of the punch.

‘If I’m going to be drinking this the entire night it’s going to be one epic hangover.’

‘We have beers too. And sodas. Everything’s out in the back yard. Just let me know and I’ll bring you whatever.’

‘So how long have you guys been planning this?’

‘A few weeks. Everyone in our class thought it was a great idea to make you feel welcome. We figured it was hard enough to start a new school senior year, not to mention the signs all over school on your literal first day and then that thing with David in the first minutes that _everybody_ saw… ‘

‘He’s not here, is he?’

‘Are you kidding me? Not that I’d think he’d want to, but I wouldn’t let him in even if he did.’

‘Thanks, Con. For… everything…’

‘Are you getting sentimental on me? You’re not even drunk yet.’

‘Maybe.’

Mitchell got up and leaned down to press a kiss on Connor’s cheek. The other boy blushed in an instant, looking at Mitchell with wide eyes. Connor’s lips were slightly parted and his tongue darted out to give the bottom lip a lick. Something pulled at Mitchell’s gut, and on impulse, Mitchell slowly pressed another kiss, hoping against hope that he read the situation right, on Connor’s lips this time.

The thing Mitchell had always hated about being gay was that you could never ever be sure that the person you flirted with was gay too, or bi or pan, however, with Connor he did know but he was still freakishly nervous when he finally dared to kiss him. He hadn’t needed to be nervous. Connor parted his lips slightly more to allow Mitchell entrance with his tongue, then he took Mitchell’s cup from his hands and placed both their cups on his desk before he grabbed Mitchell by the hips and pulled him into his lap so the blonde-haired boy was straddling him. Mitchell wrapped his arms around Connor’s neck and tilted his head slightly so they could deepen the kiss. Connor couldn’t help himself, his hands were skimming the edge of Mitchell’s t-shirt in the back and he slipped his hands under it, feeling the muscles move under the skin. Mitchell moaned when he felt Connor’s hands on his skin. It was almost too much.

‘Hey, guys, where did you…’

Will’s voice was cut off by the sight before him. Piper and Cecil started laughing behind him, Cecil wheezing something about the look on his face. Connor pulled back and looked at them. His face was flushed and so was Mitchell’s. Connor’s hair was even messier than usual where Mitchell had run his fingers through it.

‘Sorry, guys,’ Piper panted. ‘We tried to stop him, but…’

‘It’s fine,’ Connor huffed. ‘Could we just have a moment and we’ll be right down.’

‘Yeah. Of course.’ Will started closing the door and the last thing they heard him say was: ‘When the hell did that happen?’

Mitchell giggled into Connor’s shoulder where he had shyly hid his face when Will burst into the room. Connor stroked a lock of hair from Mitchell’s face and put it behind his ear. He then placed a kiss on Mitchell’s cheekbone.

‘So… I… uhm… I _really_ like you,’ he whispered.

Mitchell nodded into his shoulder. He was suddenly way too shy to look Connor in the eyes.

‘I really like you too,’ he mumbled into Connor’s hoodie.

‘Do you, maybe, want to be my boyfriend?’

Mitchell sighed.

‘Do you really want me to?’ He mumbled.

‘Look at me.’ Connor put his hands on Mitchell’s shoulders and pushed him away a little so he could meet his eyes. ‘Of course I do. I wouldn’t ask you if I didn’t. I’ve been wanting to ask you for weeks, I just… I’m too much of a coward, really.’

‘I’ve been wanting to ask you, too, I just figured… you know…’

Connor nodded.

‘So, will you?’

Mitchell smiled at him.

‘You have to give me an answer, here Mitch. My psychiatrist has told me that verbal consent is important. I can’t just assume, that’s really irresponsible of me. I think I’ve told you that before’

‘Yeah, you have. Of course I’ll be your boyfriend.’ Mitchell chuckled.

‘Great.’ Connor smiled too. ‘We should probably go down to the party, so Will don’t have to come get us again.’

Mitchell laughed. He got up and pulled Connor with him. They grabbed their cups and just before they walked down the stairs Connor took Mitchell’s hand and laced their fingers together. Mitchell pressed a kiss to his lips.

‘You okay to be open about this?’ Connor asked.

‘Yeah. Definitely. Oh, hey Con?’

‘Yeah?’

‘Do you wanna go to the Christmas ball with me?’

‘I thought you’d never ask.’

‘To be perfectly honest, neither did I.’

 

\-----------------------------------

 

The party was in full swing when they got down into the living room. No one even looked twice at their interlocked hands and Mitchell was secretly thankful for that. A couple of the guys from the soccer team smiled knowingly at them and once Mitchell saw money exchanging hands but that was the only reactions they got. Sure, Connor and him had always been touchy feely with each other but it had just been a natural part of their friendship. This was different. Now they were a real couple. Piper snaked her arm around his waist and planted a kiss on his cheek when Connor let go of his hand to go get them more drinks.

‘Happy?’

‘Were you in on that, too?’

‘Nah, but I saw it pretty quickly when I met him the first time.’

‘I always forget you’re freakishly psychic that way. It’s scary, really.’

Piper laughed at him.

‘You know this whole thing was his idea, right?’

‘I kinda figured. It has Stoll written all over it.’

‘He texted me a while back asking if I thought it was a good idea and I helped him with the details. What drinks I knew you could have, what snacks and so on.’

‘Wait, before you told me that you were coming?’

‘Yeah. He had been looking through your pictures on Facebook and found the one where we were like, twelve or something, at summer camp, and with everything that I comment he figured we would still be friends and he messaged me to ask if we were. I told him, yeah, best friends actually and we went from there. It’s been fun.’

Mitchell watched fondly through the window where Connor was picking beers from the cooler.

‘What I can’t believe is how that boy who’s ADHD basically slaughters his brain-to-mouth filter has been able to keep this quiet for weeks without slipping.’

‘Actually he’s texted me like three or four times a day saying he’d almost slipped up. I’ve been coaching him. Also, I’ve been reassuring him that you really are dense. He’s also been terrified that you’d get sick right in time for this. That would have ruined everything.’

‘With my luck I wouldn’t have been surprised.’

Connor came back with his hands full of beer cans. He handed them one each.

‘What are you guys talking about?’

‘I was just telling Piper how proud I am that you’ve been able to keep this a secret.’

‘I know, right?’

Mitchell kissed him in front of everyone which made Connor blush. A couple of people cheered and one guy from their soccer team patted Connor on the back; winking at Mitchell in the process.

 

\-----------------------------

 

They were in Connor’s bed, all three of them. The guests had gone home a while ago and Mitchell had fallen asleep with his head in Connor’s lap and his feet in Piper’s. He was exhausted. Connor was making little braids in Mitchell’s hair. Piper was eating chips that someone had left behind.

‘So, how long have you been in love with him?’ she asked. Connor blushed crimson.

‘I dunno. Weeks. It kind of snuck up on me and before I knew it, whenever I looked at him I got this tingling feeling in my chest. I’ve never felt that before so I had to ask my brother what was wrong with me. He told me I was an idiot…’ Connor chuckled softly. ‘But I’ve liked him from day one. I thought he was the coolest person I had ever met when he first came to school. Like, he took no shit from anyone. Not even from our resident bully even though David found multiple reasons to pick on him.’

‘I know. He’s cool like that. I’ve known him since we were four.’

‘Is your dad really Tristan McLean? I thought about that story about the ice cream and the audition.’

‘Yeah. He is. It’s really annoying. Mitchell has never cared, though. I guess it’s different when you do grow up together. And you know, the embarrassment of having your best friend’s dad trying to get you a boyfriend when you officially come out to him at ten. That puts a little dampener on the hero worship.’

‘He came out when he was ten?’

Piper shrugged.

‘I don’t think any one of us ever considered the possibility that Mitchell could be straight, but yeah.’

Connor looked down on him. Mitchell had fallen asleep with his glasses on so Connor took them off and placed them on the desk beside the bed. Mitchell stirred a little but settled back to sleeping.

‘What would his ideal date be? Like, I wanna take him out for real, not just make out in our rooms like horny teenagers.’

‘You are horny teenagers,’ Piper laughed.

‘Yeah, well… he told me once that he wasn’t someone that people liked to date because he couldn’t really do anything. Like go to the movies.’

‘Yeah. That would probably be his dream date right there. Dinner and a movie.’

Connor started smiling.

‘You know what. I think I can actually make that happen.’

‘Yeah? How?’

‘Nu-uh. I’m not depriving him of the opportunity to tell his best friend about the romantic date his boyfriend took him on.’

Piper laughed. She stretched her limbs and said:

‘I’m going to bed.’

She stroke Mitchell’s leg and woke him up.

‘Mitch, sweetie, I’m going to bed. Good night boys.’

Mitchell nodded. He stretched his arms and yawned. His t-shirt rode up to reveal his abs and Connor had to look away so he wouldn’t jump him then and there. He had decided that their first time would not be while they were tipsy.

‘You should get out of those skinny jeans,’ Connor said.

‘Are you trying to get me naked, Stoll?’

‘I was thinking more along the line of changing into your pajama pants but hey, I’m not complaining if you want to be naked.’

‘I think pajama pants might be a good idea. I don’t want you to think I’m a slut.’

Connor smirked. Mitchell blinked up at him.

‘Oh, sorry. I took your glasses off when you fell asleep. Here.’

Connor handed them to him and Mitchell put them on.

‘Thanks. I actually think I want to brush my teeth before I go to bed. Minimize the risk of tasting like shit in the morning.’

Connor leaned in and kissed him, slowly and softly.

‘You taste like punch now.’

‘Somehow I don’t think the punch will taste like punch in a few hours.

They changed into their pajamas and brushed their teeth before getting in bed. Connor smiled when he saw Mitchell’s bare feet.

‘Have you painted your toenails?’

‘Piper did it. Shut up, I’m pretty.’

‘I never said any differently. Come here.’

Connor pulled his boyfriend close so he was lying pressed against him. Mitchell shifted a little so his head was resting on Connor’s arm before he took his glasses off.

‘You know, this up close I can almost see the outlines in your face. Not the freckles, though.’ Mitchell booped him on the nose with his finger. ‘But I know they’re there.’

‘You have really pretty eyes. It’s hard to see their color behind your glasses but they’re hazel, right?’

‘I think so.’

‘And you have like, little flecks of gold in them.’

‘I do?’

‘Uh-huh. They’re beautiful.’

Mitchell blushed from the praise. Connor thought it was really cute how shy he was about it. The fierce boy that took nobody’s shit became a blushing little schoolgirl whenever he received a compliment.

 

\----------------------------

 

That Monday they were the talk of the whole school. Mitchell thought it was a little embarrassing but Connor just thought it was fun to be the center of everyone’s attention. He had grabbed Mitchell’s hand when they walked from the parking lot to the school, even pressing a kiss to his cheek before they entered the building.

‘You ready for this?’

Mitchell nodded. He wasn’t really that worried about what people in general thought about them, what he was worried about though, was David. That guy was a loose cannon and Mitchell had been weary of him since his first day. However, Mitchell decided to do what he normally did and fake it till he made it so he smiled confidently at his boyfriend and pulled him into the school building.

 

\------------------------------

 

They were sitting together in English class and were getting their last tests back. Mitchell, of course, got an A, the star student that he was. Connor had earned himself a B- which he was insanely proud of, since spelling naturally wasn’t his forte. He actually squealed of joy when he saw his result. Mitchell looked over at his test sheet.

‘Oh my god! Well done!’ he looked around to make sure their teacher wasn’t looking before he planted a kiss on Connor’s cheek. David, of course, pounced on them directly.

‘What, are you two dating now? Ugh.’

‘Yes, we are. Is that going to be a problem for you?’ Connor asked innocently. David ignored him and looked at Connor’s sheet instead.

‘How the hell did you get a B- anyway? I thought you couldn’t read?’

‘Neither did I, but it turns out Mitchell is highly motivational.’ Connor made a gesture to suggest the sucking of a certain male organ to which David scrounged his face in disgust. He looked at Mitchell.

‘Is that what you’re doing when you’re “studying”?’

‘Honestly,’ Mitchell said with a roll of his eyes, ‘if blowing him off would have automatically increased his grades I would have done it weeks ago and saved myself _a lot_ of effort.’

David choked on his spit and turned around, red in his face. Mitchell gave his boyfriend an amused glance. Connor was struggling not to laugh.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fucking finally they got to kiss, amiright?


	8. Chapter eight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mitchell has an unfortunate one-on-three with David and his friends. It does not end well.   
> Hermes gets to be a good dad.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First, things might get a little triggering in here. Personally, I hardly ever get triggered by things, but my beta said so, and I'm listening, so I'm warning y'all. Without saying too much, it has to do with an allergic reaction to peanuts. Take care of yourself, aight?
> 
> Second, I'm hungover as fuck becasue I was at a birthday party yesterday but somehow still managed to finish this chapter in time. If you find any spelling errors, I'm blaming rum.

Connor had a meeting with the school appointed psychiatrist after their last class, which meant he had to blow off soccer practice that afternoon. He had told Mitchell he would come around after and meet him at the locker room so they could co-ride home.

He had been forced by the schoolboard to go there when he had first been diagnosed with ADHD and in the beginning he had been very reluctant about it. Now they met once a week, and had been for years, and Connor had found that it was nice being able to talk to an adult who wasn’t his parents. It was something he would have to find a way to continue once he was off to college in New York. He had even put in a reminder on his phone that he would ask his psychiatrist if maybe he could recommend someone, you know, because he always seemed to lose his mental notes.

Connor was tapping the melody of a pop song he had heard on the radio that morning with his fingers on his thigh while he waited. That was just one of the coping mechanisms his psychiatrist had suggested he could use when he had to sit still. After a little while the door opened and Dr. Enherr smiled at him.

‘Come on in, Connor.’

He got up from the floor of the hallway where he had been sitting and trudged into Enherr’s office. While he sat down Enherr put a cup of tea on the table in front of him, then he sat down and eyed his patient.

‘You look… content, calm almost. If I didn’t know you any better, I’d say you’re relaxed.’

Connor chuckled before he took a sip of his tea and nodded.

‘I… something happened this weekend and I’ve felt so good ever since.’

‘Do you want to tell me about it?’

‘I got a boyfriend,’ he hummed.

Enherr tilted his head.

‘Is this the same boy we’ve been discussing for a few weeks now?’

Connor nodded.

‘Mitchell.’

‘What happened?’

‘He kissed me. First on the cheek and I got so flustered I didn’t really know what to do so I just sat there and blushed and stared at him and then he kissed me on the lips. And we hugged and cuddled and I held his hand in public and we slept in the same bed.’

‘And have you discussed this with him?’

Connor knew what Dr. Enherr was fishing for. He could have trouble reading people sometimes because his brain was going three hundred miles an hour in loops that people just couldn’t keep up with and his doctor wanted to be assured that it wasn’t just all in his head.

‘I asked him if he wanted to be my boyfriend and he smiled at me but I said that I needed his verbal consent so he said ‘of course I’ll be your boyfriend’. Those were his exact words.’

‘Good. That is very mature of you.’

‘Mhm. It’s important to me because I really, really like him. He asked me if I wanted to go to the Christmas Ball with him.’

‘So he is okay with the two of you being open with your relationship?’

‘I guess? I’ll make sure to ask him, you know, before I hold his hand in public and stuff.’

‘Very responsible. I feel like we’re really going somewhere.’

Connor smiled.

 

\--------------------------------

 

Mitchell was alone in the locker room. Connor still hadn’t showed up but that wasn’t anything unusual because sometimes the meetings with his psychiatrist dragged out. He had just packed up his things and put on his clothes when the door opened. He was expecting it to be Connor so he was really disappointed when it was David and three of his friends. Disappointed and anxious.

‘Well, well, I thought I would _never_ catch you alone. You’re always hanging around so close with Connor one could think you two are joined at the hip. Wait, you’re fags, you _are_ joined at the hip.’

They all laughed at the bad joke. David produced something from the pocket of his jacket.

‘You know, people seem to think you’re so cool but when I open this, you won’t be so cool anymore.’

Mitchell’s throat went dry. He started shaking his head desperately to get the boy to reconsider but there was no use. David ripped open the little plastic bag of peanuts and threw it at him. Mitchell, of course, having very good soccer reflexes, caught the thing but because it was open he found himself being showered with its content. David and his friends had already left. _They_ didn’t even want to witness this.

Mitchell felt his throat begin to swell up so he ran, stumbled, tripped out through the door and collapsed on the asphalt just outside. He scraped his hands and knees but he didn’t really care at the moment. Ignoring the blood he smudged on his jeans he tried to get his epi-pen out of his pocket but his hands were shaking too much and there was too much blood. Mitchell could feel himself slipping away and he knew from experience that he wouldn’t be conscious for much longer.

 

\---------------------------

 

Connor met David when he had left the psychiatrist and was walking towards the locker rooms. The boy was grinning when he saw him, whispering something to one of his friends and laughing.

‘Had a good time with your brain doctor, Stoll?’

Connor narrowed his eyes at him.

‘Why?’

‘Just asking,’ David said in a sickly sweet tone. ‘You’re meeting Mitchell now, aren’t you? He’s still in the locker room waiting for you. You really shouldn’t keep him waiting.’

Something didn’t feel right inside Connor so without looking back at David he started running and just when he skidded around the corner to the low building next to the soccer field he saw Mitchell stumble out and crash on the ground.

Connor kneeled beside his boyfriend and there was blood everywhere. He didn’t even stop to check where the blood was coming from because he had seen Mitchell trying to get something from his pocket so he instinctively knew the blood was not the most important thing here.

He remembered what Mitchell had told him once: take off the lid, push the pen in and stab him in the left thigh, then hold. Connor felt uncharacteristically calm throughout the whole thing, but when Mitchell drew a first, shuddering breath he collapsed with his face in his hands and started sobbing loudly. He cried for a few minutes while Mitchell was lying on his back, watching him before he pulled Mitchell into his lap so the other boy was sitting there leaning against him. Connor just wanted to feel him breathe. Feel his chest heave.

‘Hey Con…’ Mitchell’s voice was barely even a whisper.

‘Yeah?’

‘Call…’ he swallowed. It hurt to talk. Fuck, it hurt to swallow, too.

‘Right! 911.’

Connor called the ambulance and soon enough one was there. Mitchell got pulled out of his lap and laid down on a stretcher before they drove away with him. Connor wasn’t allowed to come with them. He pulled up Kelly’s number on his phone and called her instead.

‘Yello.’

‘Kelly, its Connor.’

‘What happened? Is he okay?’

‘Yeah. I um… I was on time. He just left in an ambulance. He was breathing okay, but they wouldn’t let me go with him and I don’t think I’m in any condition to drive right now.’

‘Where are you?’

‘At the soccer field. By the locker rooms. I’m just gonna go in and get his things.’

‘I’m close. Like, two minutes.’

Connor was standing in the doorway when Kelly came driving. She honked her horn but he started waving at her to come out so she did.

‘Con, what’s up? We need to go!’

‘You need to see this. It’s a fucking crime scene.’

Kelly flinched. She had never heard Connor swear before. His parents taught him better than that. Initially, in the beginning of their friendship, she had hoped that would rub off on her own son but he was a lost cause. At least it hadn’t been the other way around, either.

‘What’s up?’

‘I went to get his stuff but I’m not sure if I should. Could this count as assault or something? I don’t want to ruin evidence.’

Kelly peeked in the door and saw peanuts littering the floor of the locker room. She felt nauseous.

‘Someone did this to him on purpose?’

‘I know who. Or, at least I think I do.’

‘Okay. I can’t touch this, I’m too close for comfort. I’m going to call one of my colleagues to come down and then we can go to the hospital.’

She called a co-worker. When she got back Connor was still standing in the doorway.

‘They’ll be here in a couple of minutes.’

‘He didn’t have his glasses on. They’re in there.’

‘ He has a spare pair at home. We can get them for him on the way.’

‘His school books. Everything. All he had on him was his phone and a couple of epi-pens.’

‘We’ll get his stuff back, don’t worry.’

Connor nodded. She coaxed him towards the car. When he sat down he visibly deflated, he ran his hands through his hair and sighed. Kelly started driving towards their house.

‘You said you were on time, weren’t you at practice?’

‘I have to miss it once a week. I…’ he blushed because he didn’t know if his boyfriend’s mom would appreciate him seeing a brain doctor on a regular basis but he didn’t want to lie to her either. ‘I was talking to my psychiatrist.’

‘Oh. I didn’t know you see one.’

‘I do that once a week, you know, because of my ADHD. I don’t really have much of a choice in the matter but it’s kind of nice. He helps me with my people skills. We talk a lot about Mitchell.’

‘Yeah?’

Connor blushed. He hadn’t meant to say that. Curse his slippery tongue. Kelly only laughed.

‘Are you okay?’

‘Yeah, I guess. I got pretty scared, though. I really care about him.’

‘I know. You have from the beginning.’

Connor nodded.

 

\-------------------------

 

Connor waited in the car while Kelly picked up a couple of things for Mitchell before they drove to the hospital. Mitchell was awake when they got there but he was pale and looked insanely tired. He was squinting at them when they entered.

‘Honey, how are you feeling?’

‘Mom?’

‘Yes. It’s me and Connor.’

‘Con?’

‘Yeah, babe. I called your mom. I hope you don’t mind, but I thought she should know.’

Mitchell nodded and gestured for Connor to come closer. He sat down on the side of the bed and took Mitchell’s hand. Kelly gave him the glasses.

‘Here honey. I brought your old glasses. We weren’t allowed to grab your stuff from the locker room. Sorry.’

Mitchell put the glasses on and blinked a couple of times for focus, then he gave them both a tired smile.

‘Thanks.’

‘I’m gonna go call your mom okay? Let you two talk alone for a little while.’

Mitchell nodded. When his mom was gone he scooted over in the bed and patted the space beside him. Connor sat down and Mitchell leaned against his chest.

‘They patched your hands up.’

‘And my knees. I guess I scraped them when I collapsed.’

‘There was blood everywhere when I found you.’

‘Thank god that you did.’

Connor kissed the top of his head.

‘You scared me, Mitch.’

‘I know. Sorry.’

‘Don’t apologize.’

‘But you saved me.’

‘I did.’

Connor shuddered.

‘I met David when I left for the soccer field. It was something he said… I can’t really remember but I started running and I came around the corner just as you stumbled outside.’

Mitchell buried his face in Connor’s hoodie.

‘I could feel myself getting unconscious. I didn’t even realize you were there until afterwards.’

Connor stroked his cheek.

‘Do you want anything?’

‘No. They gave me water. My throat hurts.’

‘Don’t talk so much then.’

‘Then you talk.’

‘Okay… I told Lenherr about us. He seemed to think that us being together is good for me, as long as, you know, I don’t make you uncomfortable.’ When Mitchell scrounged up his forehead in confusion, Connor explained: ‘Like, you know how I’m sometimes too quick for my own good and assume things because people doesn’t tell me but then I realize that I left them behind in my reasoning like miles ago.’ Mitchell nodded. ‘Well, he told me that as long as we’re on common ground this is a good thing so if I ever forget to ask for your permission about holding your hand or kissing you in public or stuff just remind me, please?’

Mitchell smiled and nodded, then he whispered:

‘I wouldn’t mind if you kissed me now,’ so Connor did.

 

\--------------------------------

 

Mitchell had to spend the night at the hospital for observation and naturally Connor wasn’t allowed to stay, neither were Mitchell’s moms, so they dropped Connor off at home. Mitchell had made sure that Connor had called his parents and told them why he hadn’t come home so when he got out of the car they both came up to them.

‘Hey Kelly, how is he?’

‘He’s doing okay now, they’re keeping him for observation overnight. His doctor was there earlier and looked him over. She said we could pick him up tomorrow at lunch if nothing changes.’

‘Thank god.’

‘Well, he was lucky Connor was there.’

Connor had during the afternoon become less scared and more and more angry at David. He was clenching his fists now, trying very hard not to lose it. His father noticed this so he grabbed his son by the shoulder and led him away, down the street. He knew his son was more likely to keep it together if he was allowed to move while they talked. Kelly looked after them when they left before she turned to Connor’s mom:

‘He was really upset when I picked him up so try and get him to vent a little.’

‘Yes, Hermes has it covered. He knows how to handle him.’

‘Good. Also, if Hermes could take Connor with him tomorrow when he comes in to work because he needs to give a statement.’

‘Wait, you mean someone did this to Mitchell on purpose?’

‘I’m afraid so and Connor seems to think he knows who.’

‘Okay. I’ll talk to Hermes. We’ll watch him, make sure he doesn’t run off to punish this kid.’

‘Good. We don’t need this to get any messier. Tell him that if he wants to, he’s welcome to join us tomorrow when we pick Mitchell up from the hospital. Maybe staying at home from school for a day would be good for him. Give him a chance to cool off.’

‘You’re right. I’ll call the school. So, he saved Mitchell’s life, huh?’

‘Probably. He’s our hero.’

‘I’ll make sure to tell him that.’

 

\-----------------------------------

 

Hermes and Connor were walking down the street. Connor was clenching and unclenching his fists.

‘Do you wanna tell me what happened?’

Connor kicked a pebble and watched it bounce across the street.

‘I… he… I…’

When he realized his son couldn’t form any real words Hermes pulled Connor against his chest so he could scream into his shoulder. He did, pressing his balled fists against his head. When he had screamed so much his throat hurt he crouched on the ground and hid his face in his hands.

Hermes leaned down and pulled his son up, before he dragged him along, running. Connor smiled when he was finally allowed to move and get some of his pent up energy out. They ran for two miles before they stopped in a park and lay down on the grass. They were both panting, looking up at the sky.

‘I wasn’t with him because I had my weekly with Lenherr. If I had been this wouldn’t have happened,’ Connor said.

‘You can’t blame yourself.’

‘I’m not, I just stated the obvious.’

‘This kid has probably been waiting for an opportunity like this. Sooner or later you two had to separate.’

‘I know.’

‘But you realized something was wrong and you saved Mitchell. That’s what’s important here. How?’

‘I met this kid, David when I left Lenherr and he said something… I think it was like, you shouldn’t keep Mitchell waiting or something like that.’

‘Is that the same David who picked on him his first day?’

‘Uh-huh.’

‘So him saying that made you worried?’

‘Yeah. Of course.’

‘Well, you’ve always had a good intuition.’

‘Yeah…’

Hermes looked at him wearing his serious parent-face.

‘Look, I don’t want you to go off the charts the next time you see this kid at school, you hear? If he did this on purpose he should be punished the right way. Trust me, Kelly will see to that. Jumping him will only get you expelled and then you’re leaving Mitchell alone there, being forced to face the consequences of your rash actions. He’ll be the scape goat and you will not be able to go off to college with him in the fall because you’ll have to redo your senior year of high school. Alone. Remember that whenever the pressure builds up.’

Connor was silent for a while. He had sat up and was hugging his knees, looking out in the distance at nothing in particular.

‘Last year I would have promised you to do as you say and then I would have jumped this asshole anyway, but I don’t think Mitch would approve of that so I’m gonna do my best to contain myself.’

‘I think Mitchell has a really good influence on you.’

‘He does. It’s like magic.’

‘You love him.’

‘I do.’

Connor blushed into his knees. Hermes gently boxed him on the shoulder.

‘You know, you could have waited a few weeks with this whole dating thing. Now I owe your mother a whole week’s worth of dishes.’

‘You guys bet on us?’

‘Yeah. She had before the Christmas ball and I had on the Christmas ball. That was before you told us about the alcohol for the surprise party however, had I known _that_ when we made the bet I would never have thought you’d wait until the ball. I know what alcohol does to teenage boys.’

Connor blushed again, then he said:

‘He kissed me before we started drinking, though. Said he had been wanting to for weeks.’

‘Well, he seems like a real catch. He’s cute _and_ funny. And also, from a parental point of view, he’s been buffing up your grades like crazy and we love that.’ Hermes winked at him just as Andrea pulled up in their car. She rolled down the window and called out to them:

‘Come on now you two. I’ve got McDonalds in here and it’s getting cold.’


	9. Chapter nine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The boys go on their first date, with capital D.
> 
> Mitchell meets Travis for the first time which means Connor is in for a "treat".

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guess who almost forgot it was posting day? That's right, me! Good news is this was almost ready so I managed to pull it together in time anyway. 
> 
> There's some light smut and references to smut in this chapter, which contains the story behind the latex allergy which I know some of you have been dying to hear. Enjoy!

Mitchell got a text later that evening.

**How are you feeling?**

_Alright, I guess. My throat still hurts so I couldn’t have any dinner. I’m hungry. They gave me soup, but…_

**Thats not food thats a appetizer. If I was allowed to be there Id get you ice cream.**

_Ice cream does sound amazing. Do you maybe want to hang out tomorrow when I get home? They’ll probably not let me leave the house but we could watch some movies or something?_

**Sounds good. My mom said I cant go to school tomorrow anyway because theyre afraid I might jump David if I see him and your not there to stop me. They know that at this point youre like 85% of my impulse control.**

_Glad I can be of service and keep you occupied then._

**Yup.**

_Okay, I’m gonna try and get some sleep now. Tired as fuck. I’ll see you tomorrow. XO._

 

Connor smiled at those last letters.

**XO, Mitch.**

 

Connor had been allowed to stay over that night when Mitchell got out from the hospital, so they both slept like rocks. The next morning when they got to school, Mitchell still wasn’t one hundred percent recovered but he still wanted to go.

‘Wow, you look like death,’ was Will’s professional opinion when he met them outside their classroom.

He really did. He had dark half circles under his eyes, he was pale and his hands were shaking. On top of that he hadn’t bothered the slightest with his appearance, wearing a beanie to cover his hair, a black baggy hoodie and black sweatpants. All that black only made him look even more pale.

‘Thanks, it’s good to see you too,’ Mitchell deadpanned.

‘So? Do you guys have any inside info? All we know is that David is being questioned but nothing more.’

‘We’re not allowed to talk about it,’ Connor said.

‘Well, I guess I get that. Are you okay, though?’ he asked Mitchell.

‘Yeah, I’ll be fine. I just need a couple of days to bounce back. It’s kind of a shock on the system.’

Connor slung his arm protectively around Mitchell’s waist and Mitchell leaned his head against his shoulder. He was so fucking tired and his entire body ached. Maybe he should have listened to his moms when they said they wanted him to spend another day in bed but he also wanted David’s friends to see what they had done to him. How much it had affected him. That he wasn’t just “a little over-sensitive”.

 

\-----------------------------

 

That Saturday, after the game, Connor took Mitchell out for their first, real date. He picked him up in his car outside of his house and drove for a little while. They were actually going to the next town so there was a bit of a drive.

‘So where are we going, exactly?’

‘I told you, it’s a surprise.’

‘What is it with you and surprises?’

‘Well, you seemed to like the last one so I figured I’d give it a second try.’

‘Uh-huh.’

‘Relax, Doe, I’m not going to take you anywhere you can’t handle, promise. Seriously, you act like I don’t ever listen to what you’re saying.’

‘I’m sorry,’ Mitchell mumbled.

‘Hey, I like that you’re being cautious, but have some faith in me, please?’

‘Yeah, you’re right.’

They drove for another fifteen minutes before Connor pulled into a diner. Mitchell raised his eyebrows but Connor just smiled.

‘I’m getting us dinner to go. These guys make excellent burgers. You can wait here if you want and I’ll be right back.’

‘Alright, you know the restrictions.’

Connor nodded and left. The bags he came back with smelled heavenly and Mitchell realized how hungry he was. Then they drove on.

‘Okay, now close your eyes. We’re almost there. I’ll tell you when you can open them again.’

Mitchell got a little nervous at those words but he did as he was told. Suddenly the car stopped and he heard Connor talk to someone but he couldn’t make out what the other person was saying. Connor didn’t say anything more than: ‘Yes, thank you.’ Then they drove on for another couple of minutes before Connor parked the car and said: ‘Alright, you can look now.’

Mitchell opened his eyes and looked around. He gasped, there really was no other reaction that seemed fitting.

‘A drive-in movie theater? I didn’t even know these places still existed!’

‘They do down here. We used to go all the time when we were younger, my parents weren’t really comfortable taking two kids with ADHD to the movies but they figured here we would only disturb them and not the other visitors. We used to sit in their laps in the front seats and watch.’

‘Your parents should have some sort of medal for dealing with two of you.’

‘I know, right? That they haven’t died of stress a long time ago is a miracle. Oh, here, we should eat our food while it’s still warm.’

He unpacked the burgers and the fries and they were just as good as he had claimed them to be.

‘I’m gonna have to see if there’s one of these somewhere around New York when I move back.’

‘Most definitely. I’m thinking about taking this baby with me so we can go in her.’ Connor said as he offered Mitchell a blanket. He took it and curled up under it.

‘Your car is a she?’

‘Ruby.’

‘Because somewhere underneath all this rust she’s red?’

‘Uh-huh.’

‘Clever.’

‘Hey, don’t hate on her, she’s taken you to enough doctor’s appointments to not have to deal with that.’

‘It wasn’t her I was hating on, and she’s a clever enough girl to know that’ Mitchell said with a smirk and patted the dashboard. Connor grabbed him by the hand and yanked him closer. Mitchell laughed when Connor put his arm around him so he could lean against Connor’s chest.

‘Can I kiss you?’

Mitchell tilted his head up and kissed his boyfriend in response. Connor shifted so that he was leaning against the door and Mitchell was lying on his chest. He opened his mouth to give Mitchell access. Mitchell pushed himself closer and Connor realized they were grinding their hips together. A flash of sensation went through him and he grabbed Mitchell under the arms and pulled him even closer. He lifted his left leg up and wrapped it around his boyfriend. Finally, Mitchell put a hand on Connor’s shoulder and pushed himself off.

‘This isn’t really the time or the place, huh?’

‘No, I don’t really think so.’

Mitchell sighed. He shifted so he was lying so he could watch the movie and Connor held him tighter.

‘We’ll get there,’ he said. Mitchell nodded into his chest.

 

\------------------------------

 

Mitchell was invited over to Connor’s house for dinner to meet his big brother when he was home during his Christmas break. When he came in the house he was greeted by a slightly taller version of his boyfriend. That was pretty much the only difference. They could have been the same person. It was eerie when they stood next to each other. Travis hugged him and exclaimed:

‘It’s so nice to finally meet you Mitchell! I’ve heard so much about you. Honestly, you’re all he ever talks about. You know, I have a three hour picture slide-show to show you, prepared for this very occasion!’

Mitchell looked at Connor who just shrugged and looked at their mother for support.

‘Travis, don’t scare the boy.’

‘But Mom! I’ve been waiting so long for him to finally meet someone I can embarrass him in front of.’

‘Okay. But be nice to Mitchell. No peanuts!’

‘I know!’ Travis squealed and pulled Mitchell into the living room where he had his laptop set up and started showing him pictures of Connor, starting when they were really young and up until that summer before Travis went off to college. Every photo was tied to an embarrassing story. They laughed their asses off while Connor sat blushing into his hands next to them on the couch. Mitchell realized Travis had probably spent hours putting this slideshow together and he only thought it was fair payment for all the embarrassing stories Piper had told Connor about him growing up.

 

\----------------------------

 

Connor was miserably failing to tie a tie-knot when Travis entered his room. He had done at least fifteen of them but his dyslexia wasn’t really cooperating due to his nerves so he had trouble reading the description he had pulled up on his laptop. Travis shook his head and sighed over-dramatically.

‘Do I have to teach you _everything_?’

‘Shut up! I’m trying my best here. I really want to look good for him,’ Connor whined.

‘Wow, little brother, you’ve got it bad.’

‘Tell me about it.’

‘Here, I’ll show you.’

Travis stood behind him and did the tie while Connor watched in the mirror. Soon enough it was a perfect knot. He walked to stand opposite of Connor and adjusted the tie with a lopsided smile.

‘There. Now you’re handsome.’

‘Thanks, Trav.’

‘Just make sure to give him the dance of his life. It’ll be great, and I’ll pick you up at midnight before the dance ends. Okay?’

‘Yeah, okay.’

‘Need any advice?’

‘Probably.’

‘Don’t step on his toes and remember what your therapist says about PDA.’

‘Right.’

‘Do you have the flowers?

‘Yeah.’

‘Good. Let’s go then.’

‘I think I’m going to vomit.’

 

\------------------------------

 

Sandra opened the door when Connor knocked. She was beaming at him.

‘Connor! Oh, don’t you look handsome? Come on in, Mitchell is almost done.’

He turned around to where Travis was waiting in the car but his brother shooed him on so he followed Sandra through the door.

‘Mitchell, honey, your date’s here!’

‘Coming!’

Connor heard a bang and then the muffled sound of Mitchell swearing before his door creaked open and his boyfriend came running down the stairs.

‘I hit my knee on the bedframe,’ he said apologetically. Connor didn’t answer because he was taking in the view. Mitchell was stunning. Sandra had cut and colored his hair in a pastel green to match Connor’s own shirt. Then she had sprayed it with glitter so he was sparkling. He didn’t have that much makeup on, just mascara and a little eyeshadow that really made his eyes stand out, even behind the glasses. His nails were painted in the same color as his suit, a dark grey, and he was wearing his purple shirt and black tie that he had bought when they were shopping for Connor’s suit. On his feet were his ever present white converses.

‘Do I look okay?’ he did a little twirl when he reached the bottom of the stairs.

‘Y.. you’re beautiful.’

‘I am?’

‘Yeah.’

In all honesty, Connor was breathless. He couldn’t believe he was lucky enough to be allowed to date Mitchell.

‘Okay, Con, that’s enough drooling. Now stand close together, I want pictures,’ Kelly said.

Connor blushed but did as he was told. Just before Kelly snapped the picture he remembered something.

‘Oh, hang on, I got us something.’

‘What?’

Connor produced two small buttonhole bouquets from his pocket. Mitchell just stared at him.

‘Oh, relax Doe, they’re made from fabric. Silk, I think, to be exact.’

‘Seriously?’

Connor held his hand up to so Mitchell could get a closer look.

‘No,’ he said and rolled his eyes. ‘I got my allergic boyfriend flowers on our date. Way to ruin the mood. I may not be smart but I’m not an idiot.’

‘Sorry,’ Mitchell mumbled.

Connor just chuckled and pretended that Mitchell’s moms weren’t present when he pulled his boyfriend in for a hug.

‘Come here. I’m messing with you. You’re just being careful, I like that.’ He pressed a chaste kiss to Mitchell’s lips before he fastened the flowers to his suit. ‘There, now we’re ready for that photo.’

 

\---------------------------

 

Travis dropped them off at school. The gymnasium had been turned into a ballroom with Christmas decorations and even a giant tree in the corner. Mitchell gasped when they stepped inside.

‘Wow.’

‘I told you it was a really big deal.’

‘Yeah, obviously.’

Connor led him through the people on to the dancefloor. There he grabbed Mitchell by the waist and started leading him in a dance. Mitchell looked into his eyes and tried not to blush. There was something so intimate about being this close in a public setting. Connor leaned down and looked into his eyes, the question obvious. His boyfriend gave him an almost invisible nod, so he leaned down and kissed him. Mitchell got a little shy at first, he always did when Connor was affectionate in public even though he loved it, but he soon melted into his boyfriend’s embrace, separating his lips to give Connor entrance with his tongue. He felt like he could take on all the homophobes in the world as long as Connor was at his side. Why shouldn’t they be able to kiss like everybody else?

Someone tapped him on the shoulder and there were Cecil together with his girlfriend, Lou. They both smiled.

‘You guys look good,’ Lou stated. ‘You wanna go get some punch?’

Connor nodded.

‘Hey, where’s Will? I thought he was going to go with you guys?’ Mitchell asked.

‘He was, but then he decided that since he doesn’t have a date he didn’t want to feel like the fifth wheel with the four of us.’ Lou shrugged.

‘That boy needs a girlfriend, or a boyfriend, or one of each maybe, to make up for lost time,’ Connor said.

‘One of each would probably do him good,’ Cecil agreed.

They danced all night, and when Travis finally called Connor to tell them he was going to pick them up in half an hour Mitchell’s feet were aching to the point where he just wanted to go sit down outside until their ride came. Connor grabbed him by the hand and pulled him with him outside. He sat down on a bench a little off the side of the building. Mitchell sat down beside him. It was really dark where they were. They were quiet for quite some time, just looking at the stars. Mitchell was still holding Connor’s hand and when he looked at his boyfriend’s face in the moonlight he couldn’t contain himself. He climbed onto Connor’s lap, straddling him. Connor looked at him first with surprise and then with want in his eyes. Mitchell leaned in to nibble on his earlobe.

‘Is this okay?’ he breathed in Connor’s ear. Connor gasped.

‘Can I kiss you?’

‘Yes.’

So he did. Hungrily. Mitchell melted into Connor’s embrace, at the same time grinding their hips together.

‘Okay?’ Mitchell asked.

‘Uh-huh. You… aahhh… don’t need to ask.’

Mitchell stilled.

‘But you do?’

‘Yes.’

‘How about this? Whenever we find ourselves in a situation like this, trust me to stop you if I’m not up for it. That way you don’t have to think so much and you can just… relax. And enjoy it.’

Mitchell leaned forward and pressed his pelvis against Connor’s erection. Connor moaned into Mitchell’s shoulder.

‘God, Mitch, you’re killing me.’

‘But it feels good, though.’

‘So good.’

‘I wish we could be alone sometime, like, do this for real.’

‘Yes. M.. me too.’

Connor put his hands on Mitchell’s hips and pulled him closer for a deep kiss. Mitchell bent his head a little bit while he shifted his hips. Connor shuddered.

‘Okay, you’re gonna have to get off now before this gets embarrassing.’

‘Why wou… oh.’

‘Oh.’

‘Right. I’m getting off.’

Mitchell climbed off and sat next to Connor on the bench again. Mitchell was blushing in the dark when he asked:

‘So, are you like… a virgin?’

‘Uhm, yeah. There’s not really a lot of people around here who…’ he became quiet.

‘Me too.’

Connor looked at him.

‘But how do you know you’re allergic to condoms, then?’

Mitchell scraped his feet in the gravel and didn’t really want to look at his boyfriend when he said:

‘Because I tried to lose my virginity once. Only before we even got started, once I had rolled the condom on I had some weird reaction where I started swelling up and he panicked and ran so I had to call my mom to come get me to go to the hospital. Now I can’t of course say for sure whether it was the actual condom or that particular brand of lube it was pre-coated in, but… Anyways, it hurt like hell and I guess you can imagine the embarrassment of having to tell your moms why you need to see your doctor. The guy I was supposed to have sex with did offer to try it again but he wasn’t a virgin and I wasn’t really comfortable having unprotected sex with him. After that I kinda lost the nerve and I haven’t had a boyfriend since either.’

Connor was giggling half way through the story and when Mitchell was done he leaned in and kissed his boyfriend on the cheek.

‘God I love you baby doll. Look, if we’re really going to do this and we’re both virgins then I guess we’re safe anyhow.’

‘Yeah I suppose. Hey, you know what? Now that I think about it, my moms are going out on a date next weekend, uhm for their anniversary so I’ll have the house for myself for a few hours. Do you wanna come over and maybe… like, we don’t have to decide that we’re gonna do it but you can come over and we’ll see what happens.’

‘Sounds good.’

Connor’s phone buzzed.

‘Our ride’s here. Come on, let’s get home.’


	10. Chapter ten

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some action finally takes place, they celebrate new years eve and suddenly Mitchell disappears. Connor, of course, is worried out of his mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, slight smut-warning. Nothing too explicit or detailed.

Mitchell was nervously pacing the floor of his room. His moms had left a few minutes ago and he had texted Connor that he could come over. During the course of the week, even though they had said they weren’t going to plan anything, he had realized he was expecting to get laid. He was expecting to finally loose his virginity and he had even bought a bottle of lube, you know, because it was better to be safe than sorry.

Speaking of better safe than sorry: he had gone so far as to force Connor to join him on a visit to the clinic anyway, even if he claimed he was a virgin, because the internet was a bitch when you had anxiety and Mitchell was, after way too much googling, very sure that there were other ways to get sick without having sex. They were both fine, and he felt immensely better when he could tick that off his mental list.

When Connor rang the doorbell he almost jumped out of his skin. He quickly stashed the bottle of lube in his nightstand before going down to answer the door. Connor was fidgeting when he opened. He smelled really nice and Mitchell actually thought he had combed his hair. His eyes were nervous, though.

‘Hi, sweetie,’ he said when he opened the door wide enough for Connor to enter. Connor kissed him on the cheek when he got inside.

‘Hi.’

They stood in the hallway for a moment, both boys suddenly very nervous about the situation. Finally, Mitchell worked up the courage to ask:

‘So… do you wanna go up to my room and maybe watch a movie?’

‘Yes! Ehrm… yes, that sounds cool.’

Mitchell took Connor by the hand and pulled him up the stairs. When they got there he sat down on the bed, against the wall. Connor sat down next to him and picked a movie on Netflix. Mitchell had dimmed the lights. He sat down next to Connor on the bed and then realized he had a foot of space between them. He scooted closer to his boyfriend (Mitchell still got a little giddy when he thought about that word, _boyfriend_ ) and leaned against Connor who was in turn leaning against the wall. Connor spread his legs and tugged on Mitchell so he sat down between them, leaning his back against Connor’s chest. They sat like that for a while, watching “The day after tomorrow”, with Connor’s arms resting across Mitchell’s chest. Mitchell smiled at the fact that Connor had picked a movie they had both seen on numerous occasions before so they wouldn’t get too caught up in it. Connor was playing with Mitchell’s hair and soon enough his fingers left the scalp and traveled down to his neck.

Mitchell shifted in his seat. To retaliate, he started stroking the inside of Connor’s thigh with feather light fingers. After a few moments he could feel Connor squirm under him. He turned around and Connor was looking at him with glazed eyes, his lips slightly parted. Connor’s tongue was licking his lips while Mitchell was watching him and before he knew it Connor had flipped them over and was pinning Mitchell to the bed, kissing his neck. Mitchell tilted his head to give Connor better access to his skin. He sucked, kissed and nibbled on the skin, leaving red marks along the way. Mitchell bucked his hips up against his boyfriend’s which made Connor moan into his neck. Then Mitchell grabbed the hair on the back of Connor’s head and tugged his head up so he could crash their lips together. He forced his tongue through Connor’s lips and Connor was only too happy to allow Mitchell entrance.

Connor moaned even louder when Mitchell slipped his hand into Connor’s kind of baggy jeans and rubbed him through his boxers.

‘God! I’m dying…’ Connor panted.

‘Don’t,’ Mitchell smirked.

It was over a lot sooner than they had planned it to be. It was quick, fumble-y and awkward but when they were laying there afterwards, naked and sweaty, they both decided it had been perfect as far as first times went.

 

\-------------------------

 

Connor picked Mitchell up at his house around nine. When he called to tell Mitchell he had arrived the answer he got was:

‘Shit. Yeah, I’m _almost_ done, promise.’

‘You suck at time-management,’ Connor deadpanned. ‘Are you done enough for me to wait in the car or should I come in?’

‘Two minutes. I’ll be out.’

On point blank two minutes Mitchell came out the door. He locked it behind him and went up to the car. When he got in Connor kissed him on the cheek.

‘You’re sparkly tonight. I approve,’ he said as he started his car.

‘Thank you. It _is_ New years eve.’

‘That it is. Saved any of that glitter for me?’

Mitchell huffed.

‘Well of course I did.’

Connor smiled.

Once they had arrived to the party and Mitchell had sprayed Connor’s hair with glitter outside of their car they entered. Connor realized his boyfriend was wearing a sequined top. Of course he was, Connor thought fondly.

It was Michael, one of the guys from the soccer team who was hosting it. He was standing in the kitchen handing out beers when they arrived. He smiled when they entered:

‘Hey! If it isn’t my favorite couple! Welcome guys, can I get you anything?’

‘Uhm, no thanks, I’m fine. I’m driving tonight,’ Connor said.

‘I’ve got some of that alcohol free stuff if you’re interested?’

‘Oh, well okay then.’

‘One alcohol free beer coming up. Mitchell?’

‘I dunno. Whatever?’

‘Come on, have a drink. I’m driving you home and I can keep an eye on you in the meantime,’ Connor said. He knew Mitchell was scared of getting drunk, losing his judgement and exposing himself to something he’d get a reaction from. Last time they had gotten drunk was his own birthday party where Piper had stayed sober to watch him so he could let loose for once.

‘You okay with that?’

‘Yeah, of course.’ Connor went up to the cooler and grabbed a beer for himself and one for Mitchell. He opened it and gave it to his boyfriend who took a sip and smiled.

When the New year was closing in, Connor dressed Mitchell in his coat and a thick scarf so they could watch the fireworks from outside. Everyone was doing it. Then, he had decided, it was time to go home. Mitchell was tipsy and giggling the entire time. When Connor had managed to get him dressed and outside the fireworks were just starting. They were standing arm in arm in the crowd of party goers watching the colors light up the sky. When the clock stroke midnight, Connor leaned down to kiss his boyfriend. Mitchell smiled into the kiss. He was so God damn happy he could cry.

In the car back home Mitchell was watching Connor drive while he was leaning against the car door. He was still kind of drunk and happy.

‘Connor?’

‘Yeah, Mitch?’

‘You know I love you, right?’

Connor blushed profusely.

‘Uhm no… You’ve never actually said that.’

‘I haven’t?’

‘No.’

‘I’ve been thinking it a lot. I guess I just thought I’d told you at some point.’

Connor smiled and looked at his boyfriend for a second.

‘Well, I’ve been thinking it, too.’

Mitchell perked up.

‘You have?!’

‘Yeah, I have.’

‘But… but that’s great!’

Connor kept his eyes on the road as he nodded. Mitchell watched him with a wide smile on his face before he settled in the car-seat again. After a while Connor said:

‘I love you.’

When he didn’t get an answer he looked over to where Mitchell had fallen asleep, leaning against the car-door. He smiled fondly. ‘I really, really love you.’

 

\-------------------------

 

Mitchell woke up by his phone buzzing. He swiped the screen without putting on his glasses and was happily surprised when it was his boyfriend on the phone.

‘Have you seen it!?’ Connor all but screamed in his ear. Mitchell held the phone a few more inches from his ear.

‘You woke me up. Seen what?’

‘Put your god damned glasses on and look out the window!’

Mitchell did as he was told. It had been snowing through the night and the entire world was white.

‘School’s closed for the day! We have the day off.’

‘Why? Because of the snow? That’s ridiculous. This is nothing.’

‘Are you kidding me right now? I haven’t seen this much snow in years. We should go outside and play.’

‘Uh, okay, sure. Do you wanna come here, or…?’

‘Yeah, I’m already on my way. I’ll be there in a few minutes.’

Connor came in his car and all but tumbled out. As soon as he closed the car door Mitchell hit him with a snow ball.

‘Hey! That’s cheating!’

‘Is it?’ Mitchell asked and threw another one at him.

Connor ran up to him and tackled him. They landed on Mitchell’s back in the snow. Connor looked at him for a couple of seconds before he gave him a deep kiss, then he shoved a handful of snow down Mitchell’s coat. The blonde boy screamed and hit his boyfriend with another snowball.

They built a snowman before heading indoors. Mitchell’s moms weren’t home, they still had to work, so they had the house to themselves. Mitchell headed straight for his room with Connor in tow. He started undressing and when he was only wearing his boxer’s he turned around to Connor.

‘You should take your clothes off.’

Connor blushed which had Mitchell rolling his eyes.

‘I meant that they’re wet, idiot. I don’t want you to catch any colds. I get enough of those for both of us.’

‘Oh.’

Connor stripped down to his boxers as Mitchell handed him a pair of pink sweats and a t-shirt. After that they went down to the kitchen where they made hot chocolate before they curled up under a blanket on the couch to watch a movie. When Connor fell asleep on his shoulder Mitchell thought that he couldn’t be happier.

 

\----------------------------

 

Kelly knocked on his door.

‘Hey, sweetie, you awake yet?’

Mitchell opened it.

‘Yeah, what’s up?’

‘We were thinking about taking one last picnic before spring rolls around. Are you up for that?’

‘Now? Sure.’

‘Great. Get dressed and meet us downstairs.’

They drove out to the countryside and stopped their car by a little creek. Sandra put their blanket out and wrapped up in thick clothes, although it really was warmer than they had anticipated, they drank hot chocolate and ate sandwiches. Mitchell was sniveling a little but he didn’t think that much of it until Sandra eyed him closely and said:

‘Sweetie, you don’t look too good.’

‘I don’t?’

‘Are your eyes itching?’

He blinked.

‘Now that you mention it… yeah they kinda do. My nose too.’ He grimaced and rubbed his nose against the back of his gloved hand before he sneezed.

‘Okay, we’re going home,’ Kelly said.

‘I’m fine, really.’

‘Yeah, but you won’t be in half an hour so we’re leaving. Go wait in the car, we’ll pack things up.’

He knew better than to argue with them so he went and sat in the backseat. He fished up a Kleenex to wipe his runny nose with while he waited. Spring, apparently, came early in the south. Fuck. He should have looked that up but apparently it was too late to think about that now. Mitchell sneezed again and blew his nose while his mother started the car and drove them home. He felt really bad for ruining their picnic since apparently this had to be their last one for the season. They always had picnics during winter. It had become their thing once Mitchell’s hay fewer had flared up. Even with taking shots he still felt more comfortable spending as much time as possible indoors. The exception was for soccer. That was holy.

‘I’m gonna go lie down,’ he said when they got home. His condition had deteriorated during the car ride home. As if it was allowed to get worse once he realized what was going on. Now his eyes were red, his nose was itching and he was sneezing every five minutes.

‘Take your meds and go to sleep, sweetie. Don’t forget to set your alarm to take them once a day. I’ll call your doctor in the morning to make you an appointment and I’ll call school and tell them you won’t be in this week,’ Kelly said.

‘Thanks mom. I’m… yeah.’ He started up the stairs before he remembered something and called down: ‘If you go to the store, could you get me some…’

‘Grapes?’ Kelly cut him off.

‘Yeah.’

‘Sure honey, anything you want.’

‘Always with the grapes,’ Sandra said and shook her head. Kelly just laughed.

 

\----------------------------

 

Connor started getting worried when Mitchell still wasn’t in school by Tuesday. The boy wasn’t answering his texts or calls or anything. On Sunday he had been a little annoyed when Mitchell hadn’t answered him when he called that night when he couldn’t sleep. Mitchell was insane with helping him relax and falling asleep, it only took him minutes to accomplish what took Connor hours to do himself.

During Monday he still didn’t answer any texts so Connor actually got angry with him. It wasn’t like him to disappear off the face of the earth like this. Ditching school and his dyslexic boyfriend a week before a big test was really OOC. Mitchell had promised Connor that they could study every afternoon after school that week so he could get a decent grade. The closer they came to graduation the more anxious Connor became about getting good enough grades for his scholarship. He spent the entirety of Monday night trying to study himself the way Mitchell had taught him and he was doing okay for a while but the fact that Mitchell seemed to be avoiding him was weighing him down and he wondered if he had done something to upset his boyfriend. Surely if he was sick at least he could answer a text?

When Mitchell wasn’t in school by Tuesday Connor started to worry so by lunch he tried to call him again but to no avail. By Wednesday he was jumping in his seat from anxiety.

‘You should go to his house,’ Will said. ‘That will make it practically impossible for him to avoid you and you can see for yourself how he’s feeling. Bring his school books as a cover. That way you’re just a concerned boyfriend dropping off his homework. If he’s really sick you’ll see that and if he isn’t then you can confront him about being an asshole.’

So that’s what he did. He picked the lock to Mitchell’s locker and took out his history books so he could study for the test on Monday and got in his car at the end of the day. He parked on the street and looked up at Mitchell’s bedroom window but there was no movement so he got out. Kelly opened, wearing her sheriff’s uniform and her trademark wide smile.

‘Connor! How nice to see you.’

‘Hi. Is… is Mitchell home? I brought some of his books from school.’

‘Sure. It’s not like he’s in any shape to go anywhere.’ When Connor furrowed his brow she said: ‘Wait, he didn’t tell you?’

‘Tell me what?’ Connor asked and scraped his foot on the floor. He didn’t look at Kelly when he said: ‘He hasn’t answered any of my texts or calls since Sunday. First I thought I’d done something wrong but now since he hasn’t been to school for the entire week I started to worry.’

‘He’s been bedridden since Sunday. Hay fewer outbreak.’

‘Doesn’t he take shots for that?’

‘Yeah, but this came earlier than we anticipated. He’s got a doctor’s appointment tomorrow to get his shots but for now he’s on these really strong pills so he’s a little hazy. He barely gets out of bed at all.’

‘Yeah, spring comes early here. I should have remembered to tell him that. I’m a lousy boyfriend.’

‘You’re an amazing boyfriend, Con. Do you wanna come in and see him?’

‘Can I?’

‘Sure. He’ll be really happy to see you and I heard the tap run upstairs just before you knocked on the door so he’s probably still awake.’

‘Alright, thanks.’

Connor walked upstairs and knocked on Mitchell’s door.

‘Come in.’

It was dark in there, the blinds had been pulled shut, and all the lamps were turned off. Mitchell was lying in bed but he sat up and squinted when Connor entered before he put on his glasses and smiled a confused and tired smile.

‘Hi, Con. What are you doing here?’

‘I came to drop off your history book since you haven’t been to school all week and I figured you’d want to study a little before the test on Monday.’

He sat down on the side of the bed and kissed Mitchell’s forehead. He looked like he had been to hell and back and suddenly Connor felt like an ass for having been mad at him when he didn’t pick up the phone. He was clearly in no shape to do that. Mitchell frowned.

‘What… day is it?’

‘Wednesday.’

‘Huh. I figured it had to be at least Monday.’

He swayed a little in his seat and Connor put his arm around him and leaned him against his own chest. Mitchell closed his eyes and snuggled up to him.

‘I got worried about you because you haven’t been answering calls or texts, Mitch. How are you feeling?’

Mitchell sneezed into a Kleenex and rubbed his nose.

‘Like shit would be an accurate description.’

‘What happened?’

‘I dunno, just… spring… I guess. Hit me like a fucking brick wall. I’m gonna take my shots tomorrow and I’ll be fine within a week. Don’t worry, sweetie.’

‘Well that’s what happens when your boyfriend goes off the grid, allergies or not.’

‘Sorry. I was pretty sure I texted you the other day. Must have been a dream.’

‘Must have.’

‘Sorry, Con. These meds are fucking with me.’

‘Yeah, Kelly told me.’

Connor kissed the top of his boyfriend’s head.

‘Can I ask you a favor?’ He mumbled.

‘Sure, anything.’

‘Could you come with me tomorrow? I don’t really like to admit this, but I’m fucking terrified of getting shots.’

‘You’d think someone with your medical history would be used to it at this point.’

‘I think maybe my medical history is the problem.’

Connor chuckled.

‘Probably. Yeah I’ll come with you. When’s your appointment?’

‘One o’clock.’

‘I’ll swing by after lunch then. We’ve only got a half day of school tomorrow anyway.’

‘Thanks.’

Connor could feel Mitchell starting to droop against him so he carefully helped him lay down and tucked him in. He took off his glasses and kissed his forehead.

‘Go to sleep Mitch. I’ll see you tomorrow.’

Mitchell mumbled something unintelligible while Connor left. Kelly was in the kitchen when he got down. She had made tea which she just put on the table. She indicated the chair with her head and Connor sat down, thankful for the hot beverage.

‘Tough to see him like that, huh? So… out of it.’

‘Yeah, I wasn’t expecting it to be that bad. He didn’t even know what day it is.’

He took a sip of his tea.

‘He asked me to come with him to the hospital tomorrow, said he was scared of taking shots.’

‘He admitted that? Wow. That’s character development, right there.’

Connor smirked.

‘Are you mocking your son?’

‘I’m mocking my son’s inability to allow himself to seem vulnerable. I honestly never thought he would admit that to anyone.’

‘Huh. He must really like me, then.’

‘He does. He trusts you too, and I think that’s more important here. Just, he’s always so sure that his… problems… will scare people away so the fact that he trusts you to stay anyway, that’s huge for him. I think you should know that.’

‘Wow…’

‘I know, right?’

‘I thought he was so cool when he first came to school, the way he stared down anyone who tried to bully him, for whatever reason.’

‘He’s a strong one.’

‘Yeah. Strongest person I know, but he thinks he’s weak, because of… you know. I’ve tried telling him differently, but…’

‘He refuses to listen.’

‘Yeah.’

‘Well, our son _may_ be an idiot but he’s worth it. At least we think so, but then again, we’re biased.’

Connor chuckled.

‘Well, I do so too. Thanks for the tea, but I gotta go. I still have a test to study for and now I have to try and do it on my own since my tutor is incapacitated. Wish me luck.’

‘You know, if it helps your motivation your tutor will kill you if you fail this test.’

Connor turned around with his hand on the door handle and smiled at her.

‘It does actually. Thanks, Mrs. Doe.’

‘You’re welcome, sweetie. See you tomorrow.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Four chapters left. Soon it's time for a plot-twist, don't you think?


	11. Chapter eleven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Connor is a good boyfriend and takes Mitchell to the hospital. Mitchell has a heart to heart with his mothers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Angst warning! I promised you a plot twist, didn't I? There are some depictions of violence and abuse in this chapter. Nothing too graphic, but still....

Turns out, they didn’t see each other the next day. Kelly called Connor that morning and said she had been called in to work on an emergency and wondered if he could possibly drive Mitchell to the doctor’s office by himself. Connor figured it didn’t really matter because he’d be there anyway so he agreed to that. She called him a darling and thanked him endlessly before terminating the call.

Connor figured he should probably go in and fetch his boyfriend since he seemed so confused the other day but Mitchell came out through the front door as soon as Connor pulled over. He looked more awake than he had yesterday. Connor kissed him quickly on the cheek and pulled out on the street.

‘You look better. How are you feeling?’

‘The…’ Mitchell sneezed. ‘…allergy’s worse but at least I’m conscious.’ His voice sounded cracked. He sneezed again. ‘I couldn’t take my pills this morning since I’m taking that shot now.’ Mitchell rubbed his nose with the back of his hand, closed his eyes and leaned his head against the backrest.

Will was sitting behind the counter when they entered the waiting room. Mitchell’s moms had decided that it was better for them to pay for a private practice doctor for their son instead of him going to the big hospital every time he got sick. It was fairly easy to get ahold of a private practitioner and that meant he didn’t have to repeat everything to a new doctor every time he had to go get a treatment. Will was interning at the practice when he was off from school, trying to score as many extra credit points as possible, as well as getting some experience before starting premed-school. When the boys got up to Will Mitchell groaned and dunked his forehead on the counter.

‘Translation: he has an appointment at one o’clock.’ Connor said.

‘Alright.’ Will wrote something on his computer. ‘Ah, here. Antihistamine shot. Yep, you’re emitted now. Just sit down and the doctor will call when it’s time.’

‘Thanks,’ Mitchell mumbled and fell down into the closest chair. He leaned his face in his hands and rested his elbows on his knees. Connor rubbed his shoulder.

‘You hanging in there?’

Mitchell nodded. He handed Connor his glasses so he could rub his itching eyes in between his sneeze fits.

‘You guys can go in now,’ Will called after about ten minutes.

Connor pulled Mitchell to his feet and supported him through the door. Mitchell’s doctor was sitting in a swivel chair, arranging the needles on a wheeled table.

‘Will, you can come watch if you want,’ she said when she saw that he was hovering in the doorway. He scurried into the room and took his seat on a chair beside her. Connor placed Mitchell on the cot and stood in front of him. Mitchell was leaning his head against Connor’s chest. The doctor handed him a couple of pills that he swallowed with a cup of water. She explained that they were antihistamines that he could take with the shot so he didn’t have to suffer too much from his hay-fewer until the shot started working.

‘Alright, we’re going to start with taking some blood tests and then we’ll administer the antihistamine shot last.’

‘Can I stand here?’ Connor asked. ‘I actually think he’ll fall forward if I move.’

‘ _I_ actually think I’ll fall forward if you move,’ Mitchell mumbled into Connor’s chest.

‘Yup, that’s fine,’ the doctor said. ‘I just need his arm. Will, can you hold it for me?’

‘Yes.’

He took Mitchell’s arm and Connor felt his boyfriend tense up.

‘Con…’ he whined.

‘It’s okay, baby-doll, you’re okay. We’re done soon. Just focus on my breathing, okay, like you always tell me to do when I’m stressed.’

Will looked at Connor with questioning eyes.

‘He’s got a phobia for getting shots.’

‘Mpff…’ Mitchell said into Connor’s chest when the first needle pricked his skin. Connor stroked his hair and cooed in his ear. He glanced sideways to see the doctor draining Mitchell on blood in a test tube, and then removing it to replace with another tube, cued by Mitchell tensing in his arms. The boy was shaking now. Just before the medicine shot was administered they had to pause because Mitchell started sneezing again. When he finally had his shot he kind of melted into Connor’s embrace, tears streaming from his eyes. Will and the doctor left them alone to have some privacy and allow Mitchell to calm down before Connor helped him to the car.

‘Fucking anxiety, shit,’ Mitchell muttered into Connor’s shoulder. Connor chuckled.

‘You’re gonna be okay, baby doll. Want to get home?’

‘Yeah. As soon as possible.’

‘Can you stand?’

‘Think so. My legs feel a little wobbly though.’

‘I’ll support you. Come on.’

Connor dumped Mitchell on the couch when they got home. Mitchell was shivering so Connor went upstairs and grabbed his two covers and wrapped them around him in a cocoon before making them some tea. He handed the cup to Mitchell before burrowing himself down under the covers, too. Mitchell settled with his legs in Connor’s lap. They put on a movie that they didn’t really watch because Mitchell fell asleep and Connor realized he didn’t like it. However, getting to the remote would mean waking Mitchell up and he didn’t want to do that so he started scrolling through all the social media apps on his phone instead.

That’s how Kelly and Sandra found them when they got home. Connor deep in his phone and Mitchell asleep with his feet in his boyfriend’s lap. The sound of them entering made Mitchell stir. He looked around with a confused look on his face, first at the TV and then at Connor.

‘You’ve been asleep for a couple of hours,’ Connor said. ‘I didn’t want to wake you.’

‘You’ve been sitting here the whole time? You’ve been sitting still?’

‘Yeah, I mean, I can if I really focus.’

Mitchell smiled.

‘Sorry I fell asleep on you.’

‘Nah. It was kind of nice. But… I have to get home, I still need to study for Monday and now I feel like going for a run.’

They stood up, Mitchell wrapped himself in his covers and followed Connor to the door. His moms had migrated into the kitchen. Connor pressed a kiss to his cheek.

‘Go back to sleep. I’ll call you tomorrow, okay?’

‘Okay.’

 

\---------------------------

 

‘Mitchell, honey, can we talk to you for a moment?’

Both Sandra and Kelly were sitting at the kitchen table. Kelly was grey in the face and Connor could tell she had been crying. A lot.

‘What’s wrong mom?’

‘Just… sit down, honey,’ Sandra said. ‘Please. You too, Connor, this concerns you too I’m afraid.’

Something icy was dropped into Connor’s gut. He nodded. This was it. Now they were going to tell him that his dyslexic attention deficit hyperactive disordered ass wasn’t good enough for Mitchell and that they should stop dating. He knew it had gotten worse with every passing month of senior year, what with the stress and all, and he and Mitchell were both struggling to keep his grades good enough. Connor was so god damn thankful for Mitchell because he was well aware that if it had been up to Will to help him save his grades he would have been fucked by now. Now Mitchell’s parents had gotten tired of their son exerting himself over his stupid boyfriend. They were tired of their son’s stupid boyfriend who was too stupid to manage graduating high school on his own. Connor had been waiting for this day ever since he and Mitchell had started dating. Hell, he had been waiting for it ever since Mitchell started tutoring him.

When Connor wasn’t moving Mitchell grabbed his hand and pulled him towards the kitchen table. He blindly followed and allowed Mitchell to gently push him into a chair.

‘We have something to tell you two, but mostly you, honey,’ Sandra said. 

‘Okay…’ Mitchell trailed off. He still hadn’t let go of Connor’s hand.

Connor swallowed and forced himself to try and calm his boyfriend a little. He could feel Mitchell’s anxiety spike when he didn’t know what was going on. Connor started rubbing circles on Mitchell’s wrist to give him something to focus on. If they wanted this relationship to end Connor was going to make sure Mitchell didn’t have to feel any guilt over it. He loved Mitchell too much for that.

Sandra and Kelly were holding hands on the table. Kelly had started crying again so Sandra did all the talking.

‘We haven’t been completely honest with you, sweetie, about how we got you.’

‘Uhm…’ was all Mitchell managed.

‘Just… listen, okay? Can you promise me to listen to what I have to say and not interrupt me, after that we’ll answer any questions you might have. Okay?’

Mitchell nodded and swallowed dryly. Connor squeezed his hand and gave Mitchell what he thought was a reassuring smile. At least that was what he had meant it to be. Mitchell squeezed back.

‘Kelly and I have been friends since we were young, like, really young. But you know that already. When we were in high school, senior year, she met a man called Ken. He was a college student and he was really cool, we all thought so. He seemed to absolutely adore Kelly. Showered her with gifts, took her on romantic dates, you know the works. They got married pretty quickly and by graduation Kelly was pregnant.’

Connor watched his boyfriend’s face for any sign of emotion but Mitchell’s eyes were completely blank. He kept rubbing Mitchell’s wrist and hoping that his boyfriend hadn’t completely zoned out, and he was more than relieved when Mitchell’s thumb twitched a little against his hand.

‘Kelly moved in with Ken and they seemed so happy. The first time he hit her, I remember it clearly because it was only a month after graduation, she came to me, crying. I was furious. I went to confront him. He was drunk and high. We had him arrested but he got out again because Kelly was too scared to testify.’

Kelly was staring at the tabletop, too scared to meet her son’s gaze.

‘Things got worse after that. He… kept hitting her and by now I had moved away to college. I didn’t realize how bad it was or how much power he had managed to get over her. You know, people say that women who are abused should just walk out but it’s not that simple. He was threatening her, saying that if she left him he would chase after her and kill the baby she was carrying. One night, however, she knocked on my door. She was emaciated, sick and shaking from withdrawal. She had had enough and she had run away. Going to her parent’s house was too risky so she had stolen a car and made her way to me. Across the country. When she told me what he had done to her…’

Sandra had to stop for a moment to try and collect herself. Connor watched her intensely, and so did Mitchell. He still hadn’t said a word, or showed any signs of emotions. He was just sitting there, still as a rock, all tensed up, listening intensely.

Sandra continued: ‘He had raped her repeatedly, hit her, force-fed her alcohol and tied her down on the bed for days, injecting her with drugs. All so he could keep his hold on her. When she finally came to she had left without taking so much as a coat. She had nothing except the clothes on her back. My roommate and I took her to see a doctor. I called her parents, letting them know she was with me and that she was safe. I also let them know exactly what he had done. They swore to never tell him where she had run off to. Her father even went so far as to say that he would send me enough money each month so she could stay with me and have her baby in peace. I agreed to that. She was my oldest friend, after all, my best friend, and I felt like I had failed her by not paying her enough attention. My roommate, the beautiful soul that he is, agreed to let her take our spare room. It didn’t bother him that she was about to have a baby, said he had enough siblings to know the drill. That was your uncle Tomas, by the way.’

Mitchell nodded. It was the first time he had moved through all this, the first time he had even acknowledged that he had heard what she was saying. The icy cold inside Connor had kept spreading through this whole story. Of course he knew how it ended. He wasn’t an idiot, even if he couldn’t handle school.

‘The doctor said it was a miracle that the baby was still alive, that it had an amazing will to live. Only thing was, he couldn’t tell us how all this abuse would have affected it. What complications could arise once the little boy was born, and even through him growing up. What he could see was that the baby had all its limbs and that on the surface, it was perfect. It had a strong heart. But as far as long term effects and brain damage, it was too early to tell. We started buying a crib, and clothes and stuff. A lot of things were given to us from people in the community since we didn’t have a lot of money and Kelly’s parents could only provide with so much. Fortunately, Tomas’ sister had just had her third baby and they had decided that three was enough so she gave us most of their stuff, as her kids grew out of it.’

Mitchell had started tapping his foot on the floor, a grim expression on his face. His lips were nothing more than a thin line. Connor knew from experience that he was about to lose it. Mitchell had started to put two and two together. Connor looked at Sandra who had realized the same thing, but she forced herself to continue and Mitchell forced himself to listen. He had promised, after all, and Connor knew he always, _always_ kept his promises.

‘The little boy was born about six weeks too early. Sandra and him had to spend a couple of weeks at the hospital. They established through tests that he had no visible brain damage and no trouble hearing. The long term effects… well, I suppose we’ve found most of those out by now.’

She glanced at her son who was now looking like he was plotting murder. Connor kept stroking his wrist, hoping against hope that he would be able to calm his tense boyfriend down a little.

‘Kelly and our son, by now we both thought about him, you, as _our_ son. We loved each other, figured we always had, so now we were a family, you had only been home from the hospital for a few weeks when Ken found us. He came by one evening, luckily all four of us where home, and broke in. I’m not going to account for everything that was said and done that night, but in the end Tomas hit him hard enough in the head with a frying pan to knock him out and we called the police. This time Kelly was strong enough to testify, to keep our baby safe. Ken was incarcerated and we were finally safe. This entire episode inspired Kelly to go back to school and become a police officer, as soon as you were old enough to go to kindergarten.’

You could cut the tension in the kitchen with a knife by now. Sandra fell silent, watching her son. He was looking at the tabletop. Connor could feel him shaking in his seat. He squeezed Mitchell’s hand tighter and Mitchell actually responded by looking him in the eyes. Connor could see the tears threatening to spill over.

‘Baby doll how are you feeling?’ Connor whispered. Mitchell just shook his head. He turned his face towards his moms again. His voice was shaking when he said:

‘Why are you telling me this now?’

Sandra sighed.

‘Mitchell, you need to know that we thought we were protecting you.’

‘By fucking lying to me!’

‘Sweetie, please listen… we didn’t want you to know about Ken. Maybe that was wrong of us, just…’

‘I’m asking you again.’ Mitchell’s voice was strained now. ‘Why are you telling me this now?’

This was the first time Kelly spoke during the entire conversation.

‘Because he escaped,’ she said. ‘He wants his son back. That’s why he came to find us the first time.’

‘Well, then you better fucking handle it.’

‘We are. Trust me, sweetie, we have every officer from here to New York looking for him. But until we find him we want you to have an officer with you at all times. At school, soccer practice… everywhere. You’re in danger.’

Mitchell shot up out of his chair so violently that it fell to the floor behind him with a loud bang.

‘No! Like hell I am!’ He pressed the balls of his palms against his forehead and took a few deep breaths before he looked at Kelly again. ‘My whole fucking life’s been restricted enough as it is! I.. I can’t see! I can’t… I can’t go _anywhere_ without a fucking _bag_ full of medicines and… and anxiety and now I find out that it is _your fucking fault_! No officer! You created this mess so now you better fucking handle it!’

He stormed out of the house and slammed the door after him. Sandra got up to follow him but Connor was quicker on his feet.

‘You two have done enough damage for one night. I’ll handle it.’ Then he went after his boyfriend.

Mitchell was pacing the sidewalk next to Connor’s car and muttering angrily to himself. Connor pulled him into a hug when he got there. Mitchell tried to resist at first but Connor was relentless and finally he relaxed with his face buried in Connor’s shoulder.

‘Hey, babe, how are you feeling? Talk to me.’

‘I hate them. They did this to me.’

‘Now you’re not making any sense.’

Mitchell sighed.

‘I know, I’m just so _fucking_ _angry_ I can’t even stand to look at them. My whole life! They’ve been lying to me my whole life and every time I’ve asked them why I have to be like this they just say they wished they knew, too. But they did know. They did know why I’m sick all the fucking time. They did know why I have to carry around medicine all the time because I’m allergic to fucking everything.’ He started sobbing into Connor’s shoulder. ‘They did know,’ he whispered.

Connor could feel his boyfriend shivering. He was only wearing a t-shirt in the still rather chilly April night. He pulled off his letterman jacket and helped Mitchell put it on.

‘Okay, I’ve got an idea. If you won’t let them have an officer following you around then what if we make sure you’re never alone? Like, me, Will and Cecil can be with you so you can’t disappear without anyone noticing. And if you want to, you can stay a few days at my house to cool off.’

‘I’d love that. Think that’d be okay with your parents?’

‘They don’t have a say in the matter.’

‘Alright, let’s go.’

Connor huffed.

‘Like I would ever let your sickly ass go _anywhere_ without your meds. Come on, you can go to your room and pack your stuff, I’ll talk to your moms in the meantime. You can just pretend like they’re not there. Okay?’

Mitchell sighed.

‘I guess.’

Connor smiled down at him. When Mitchell tilted his head up he kissed him and the last of Mitchell’s anger just melted away. Connor had his arm around Mitchell’s waist when they re-entered the house. His moms were still sitting at the kitchen table and they looked up when the boys walked in. Connor put his hand up to stop them. Mitchell, true to his word, didn’t even look at them. He took the stairs two at a time and disappeared upstairs. Connor sat down opposite them again.

‘He hates me,’ Kelly said. She looked defeated.

‘No, he doesn’t. But he’s really angry with the both of you. Mostly he’s angry because you could have given him an explanation to why he’s so sick years ago, because he thinks about that a lot. He hates _that_.’

‘Is he going with you?’ Sandra asked.

‘Yeah. He doesn’t particularly want to stay here, he’s still too upset with the both of you. We’ll take care of him, don’t you worry. The guys and I’ll make sure he’s never on his own so he can’t get taken without anyone knowing and alerting the police. He just needs to get some perspective on this. It’s a lot to throw at him at once.’

‘We know,’ Kelly said.

‘I’ll let you know how he’s feeling, okay?’ Connor said as Mitchell came down the stairs again. They nodded in unison.

Mitchell didn’t even say goodbye to them, he just left. Connor took him to their favorite diner and treated him to dinner before they went back to his house. Once there Mitchell went up to wait in Connor’s room while he explained everything to his parents. Connor had suggested that maybe he should call Piper, because he needed someone to talk to, he needed his best friend, so Mitchell did. They ended up talking for two hours while Mitchell cried a lot with his head in Connor’s lap.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gods, I'm a horrible, horrible person. But! At least nobody died, right orchid?


	12. Chapter twelve

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sandra and Kelly tries to make peace with their son, Connor misplaces his boyfriend and Mitchell gets an upper body workout.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did I say misplace? I said misplace.

The day after was a Saturday, and they spent it in bed watching movies, or just talking and cuddling. Mitchell didn’t feel up to do anything but staying in Connor’s arms. They burrowed under the covers, not even bothering to wear pants and living off of junk food that Connor’s dad provided. They didn’t even have to ask for anything, he just went to the store as soon as he could in the morning and came back with two grocery bags full of junk food and sodas which he dropped off outside of his son’s room. The boys didn’t go downstairs for the entire day.

 

\------------------------

 

If you ignored the threat of the homicidal maniac trying to find out where he lived, Mitchell was relishing the days he spent at his boyfriend’s house. He didn’t want to think about his mothers and their lies.

Connor’s parents were amazing. They never asked any uncomfortable questions, Hermes only said he could stay for as long as he needed to. He didn’t tell Mitchell he kept Kelly in the loop when they saw each other at work, but Mitchell kind of figured. He wasn’t stupid.

The calm bliss was interrupted one day when Connor came to his (their?) room and sat down next to his boyfriend on the bed. Connor had been downstairs with his parents and Mitchell had been reading through some homework he had brought with him. At first he didn’t register the look on Connor’s face but when he cleared his throat Mitchell gave him a closer look. He looked guilty, and Mitchell could only imagine one reason why. He harrowed his brow when he asked:

‘What, Stoll?’

‘You have visitors.’

‘I don’t want to see them,’ he said, assuming Connor was talking about his moms.

‘I know, babe, I do. I get it, but… can you just _talk_ to them? You don’t have to move back home, you can stay as long as you like, I promise. All they want is to see you, to see that you’re doing okay.’

Mitchell closed his book and sighed dramatically.

‘You totally owe me one,’ he muttered before sliding off the bed and standing up. Connor took his hand and dragged him downstairs to the kitchen where Andrea was serving them tea. Hermes was standing, leaning against the counter with his own cup in his hand. Andrea had placed cups on the empty seats where Connor and Mitchell sat down, too. Mitchell looked at it, then he grabbed it with his shaking hands, just so he’d have something to do with them. He looked defiantly at his moms when he said:

‘See. I’m perfectly fine. Happy now?’

Neither of them said anything for a long time, until Kelly spoke up.

‘You know, if you want to punish someone for this, punish me. Don’t take it out on your mother. All she ever did was to take me _and_ you in when we needed shelter the most.’

Mitchell regarded Sandra for a while before he looked back at Kelly and said:

‘She didn’t tell me either. I’ve asked both of you so many times and neither of you said anything.’

‘That’s what’s bothering you the most, isn’t it?’ Sandra said. ‘Not the fact that you have an escaped maniac looking for you, but the fact that we didn’t tell you until now?’

‘You think?’ Mitchell deadpanned. ‘Eighteen years and none of you fucking said _anything_. All the times I asked you why I’m like this and you both lied right to my fucking face.’

‘We…’ Kelly started but Mitchell cut her off.

‘I’m not done. You don’t get to talk until I’m done.’ He sighed and looked into his teacup to try and gather himself a little. ‘You know, I can live with this,’ he said and gestured to himself. ‘I’ve done it my entire life. All the restrictions, the shots, the medicines, hell even the anxiety and the medication for that… It’s obviously not ideal but by now I think I can cope fairly well. The over-sensitivity and being sick all the fucking time isn’t the worst. The fact that the two people who should care the most about my well-being in the entire world have been lying to me my entire life. That sucks. That _hurts_.’

Connor was stroking his back. Mitchell was tense, real tense. His muscles were like rocks. Connor could see the tenseness in his neck. He’d have to massage him later, before they fell asleep or he knew Mitchell would be in pain in the morning.

‘We know, sweetie,’ Sandra said. ‘We get it. It was shitty of us not to tell you but we honestly believed we were doing you a favor. Clearly we were wrong and we’re sorry.’

Mitchell took a sip of his tea and thought about it for a while, before he said:

‘Have you caught him?’

‘No,’ Kelly said. ‘He’s still out there, somewhere.’

‘Fuck.’

‘Yeah,’ she agreed.

‘I suppose you want me to come home?’ Mitchell asked. He already knew the answer, of course.

‘We would love it if you did.’

‘It doesn’t mean that I’ve forgiven either of you. That’s a long time coming.’

‘Of course,’ Sandra said. ‘We don’t care right now whether you hate us or not, all we want is for you to come home so we can keep our eyes on you.’

‘I’ll think about it. I’ll let you know tomorrow.’

They both nodded. Mitchell grabbed his cup and headed upstairs. When he reached Connor’s room he sat the cup down on the floor with shaking hands, then he curled into a little ball beside it and cried. Connor came up after a couple of minutes and in turn curled around Mitchell. They lay like that for quite some time, curled up on the floor, until Mitchell didn’t have any more tears left in him. Connor helped Mitchell sit up between his legs and he wrapped his arms around his torso.

‘You should move back home, baby doll. They’re really worried about you.’

Mitchell sighed and leaned back against his boyfriend.

‘I know that, I really do, I just… I can’t stand the sight of them.’

‘I get that. Can I make a suggestion?’

Mitchell turned around to look at Connor.

‘Sure, why not?’

‘Move home tomorrow. Put this thing on the shelf for now. I’m not saying you have to forgive them, I’m only saying you should wait with the punishment until this thing has blown over. Once that guy Ken is back in jail, you can be angry at your moms. Now isn’t the time to be petty.’

‘You’re like a real-life Yoda, aren’t you, Stoll?’

‘Why are you only calling me that when you’re upset?’

Mitchell looked away.

‘Because I love your first name and I don’t want to call you that when I’m angry because I don’t want to taint it,’ he mumbled.

Connor smiled widely and kissed his boyfriend on the back of the neck.

‘Come on, baby doll. Let’s take a hot shower together and then I’ll give you a massage so you won’t be in pain tomorrow. I saw how tense you were down there.’

Mitchell sighed and nodded. He turned around so he could rest his cheek on Connor’s shoulder for a couple of minutes before he allowed Connor to pull him on his feet and lead him to the bathroom.

 

\-------------------------------

 

Mitchell was lying on a rugged wooden floor when he woke up. His vision was blurred so he blinked a few times before he realized he wasn’t wearing his glasses anymore. He started feeling around for them but apparently they had been lost somewhere along the way to… wherever this was. If his itching eyes and runny nose were any indication he was somewhere in the countryside, probably a farm somewhere. After all, there was only so much his shots could do to protect him if he decided to go sit among allergens.

He remembered he had answered the door, wearing only a t-shirt and his pajama pants because even if it was a Wednesday they didn’t have any classes since it was almost time for graduation anyway, and he was expecting Connor to come over and binge watch The X-files with him. It hadn’t been a perfect solution to the “Mitchell is not allowed to be alone”-theme they had had going on for the past days but Connor was on his way and Mitchell would only be alone for like, ten minutes, max. What could happen in ten minutes, really?

Enough, apparently.

There had been a man standing outside but that was all he could remember before everything went black. He didn’t know what the man looked like or how he had been incapacitated, but he figured it was a blow to the head. That would explain the headache.

Mitchell tried to take in his surroundings. He was in a room, of course, he could make out a door due to the fact that it was a different color than the wall. There was barely any furniture in there, an armchair over by what he assumed was the window was all he could see. Other than that the room appeared to be empty. He checked his pockets but of course his phone had been confiscated. No phone and no glasses, Mitchell was out of luck.

He got up and tried the door but of course it was locked. If someone had kidnapped him for whatever reason they sure as hell wouldn’t have left the door unlocked. He went over to the armchair and curled up in it. His bare arms and bare feet were cold.

Mitchell didn’t know how long he had been sitting there when the door creaked open and he heard the sound of cowboy boots entering. He turned his head towards the door and could make out the blurred figure of a man.

‘Good. You’re awake. How are you feeling?’

‘Cold.’ Mitchell said, wrapping his arms tighter around his chest.

His capturer seemed to have anticipated that because he threw a blanket at Mitchell. The boy wrapped himself up in it and tried not to feel too thankful. He sneezed.

‘You look sick.’

Mitchell wrinkled his nose.

‘I have allergies. We’re on a farm, aren’t we? Look, I… I need my meds…’

‘I knew this was gonna happen. I knew that if they got to raise you without a man in your life…’ He shook his head. ‘Don’t worry, son, it’s not too late for me to make a man out of you.’

Mitchell fought the urge to visibly shiver. He didn’t like the way that the man had said _son_ , like he meant it in a literal way rather than a general one. _What is he going to do with me?_

He thought back to last weekend, when he and Connor had been sitting by their kitchen table as Mitchell’s moms told him about how they _really_ got him. He had been so fucking angry at them for lying to him his entire life. Connor, the poor soul, had done his best to calm Mitchell down but to no avail. It had ended with him storming off and then he had spent the following three days at Connor’s house, refusing to see his moms.

Eventually he had sat down and talked it out with them, in Connor’s kitchen, and he had even moved back home but he hadn’t forgiven them. It was mainly just because no one had seen the escaped convict Kelly called his birthfather and they were all really worried about him. He could see that. Now all he wanted was to see them. He didn’t know how long he had been gone but Connor was supposed to come over so they should know by now that something was wrong. They must be worried sick.

The room became darker and darker as Mitchell sat there, thinking about his moms and about Connor. He didn’t bother to get up and try to find a source of light because it would all be a blur anyway. Eventually he must have fallen asleep in the armchair because next thing he knew it was light outside again.

 

\-----------------------------------

 

Connor parked his car on the drive-way and headed for the house. The door was open, which was weird. He rang the doorbell but when he didn’t get any answer he got worried. Mitchell was waiting for him, he knew that, so he wouldn’t have left, and… was that his glasses on the floor? Connor bent over and looked but something told him not to touch them. He suddenly had an uncomfortable flashback from the peanut incident.

He stepped over them and took a look around the house. No one was home. Okay, so now he was really worried. Mitchell would definitely not have gone anywhere without his glasses, especially not with the threat of his birthfather… Connor instantly became cold inside. He picked up his phone and with shaking hands he called Mitchell. No answer. He called him again. No answer this time, either. He tried calling Kelly. She didn’t answer. He called her again. Still nothing, so he decided to call his dad. He tapped up the number to his dad’s work phone and waited while the signals went by. He didn’t even count them like he usually did, he was too anxious for him to pick up.

‘Hermes Stoll speaking, what can I do for you?’

‘Dad, its Connor…’

‘How many times have I told you not to use this number unless it’s an emergency?’

‘I need to talk to Kelly. She’s not answering her phone.’

‘She’s in a meeting with the chief, why?’

‘Mitchell is gone. I’m at their house because we were supposed to hang out and he’s not here. Last I heard he sent me a text asking me when I was coming and that was like twenty minutes ago when I was in the shower and… and he’s not answering his phone and the door is open and his glasses are on the floor and the glass is shattered and I’m really, really scared right now.’

‘Okay, stay where you are, we’re coming.’

It only took them about ten minutes to arrive at the house. Connor was sitting in his car, trying not to freak out when two police cars with their sirens blasting came driving down the street and stopped with screeching tires outside of the house. He got out of his car and his father came running up to him, pulling him into a hug. Connor started shaking against his chest. He had done a pretty good job keeping it together so far, but now when Hermes was there he didn’t feel like he had to anymore. He started rambling about Mitchell being gone and it being his fault because he was supposed to be with him but he lost track of time in the shower because he was too busy staring at the tiles in the bathroom and curse his ADHD because now Mitchell was gone and it was his fault and he hated himself so much right now. Hermes just stroke his hair and mumbled into his hair:

‘Schhh…. You don’t hate yourself, you hate your disability. There’s a difference.’

Connor didn’t really take that in because he was stuck in rambling mode.  Kelly was walking up to the house together with two of her colleagues. They went in and looked around before they walked out again, one of them picked up a phone and made a call. Kelly came over to Connor and touched his shoulder gently.

‘Con?’

He stopped rambling and wiped his tears and his nose with his sleeves while he turned to look at her.

‘You are a clever one, aren’t you?’

Connor had been called many things in his life, but clever was not one of them. Not by someone who wasn’t his parents… or Mitchell. He just looked sheepishly at Kelly, because he didn’t understand a thing.

‘By the looks of it, all he’s got with him is his phone. No glasses, no medicine, not even his shoes or jacket. You were right to be worried and I appreciate that you did all you could to get ahold of me. My colleague over there is going to ask you some questions. Is that okay?’

‘Yeah.’

The guy who had been on the phone came over to them. He held his hand out to Connor. Connor shook it with his right while he kept obsessively tapping a song with his left fingers on his leg.

‘Hi, I’m Sheriff Jones. Are you the one who called it in?’

‘Yeah. We were supposed to meet here, but…’

‘Your dad told me he texted you about half an hour ago?’

‘Yeah, he asked me when I was coming and I had just gotten out of the shower so I wrote that. I… I’ve tried calling him, but he doesn’t pick up.’

‘Well, his phone is not around here so we assume he has it on him.’

‘He always has it in his pocket,’ Connor said. ‘He’s a little paranoid about putting it down and not having it within reach if he needs it.’

‘That’s true,’ Kelly said. ‘He’s a sick kid, he’s supposed to always have his phone within reach in case something happens.’

‘Well, as long as it’s on we can track it. I’m going to call and give the order for that. Have you touched anything?’ Jones asked Connor.

‘Uhm, the door I think, when I went inside to look for him. Otherwise nothing.’

‘But he’s here all the time so his prints will be everywhere anyway,’ Kelly provided.

‘Alright. We’ll start dusting the place down. Techs are on their way, as is our deputy with your wife, Kelly.’

Kelly nodded. She had gotten tears in her eyes now, so Hermes pulled her in for a hug. Connor was standing awkwardly to the side and looked on. He didn’t know what to do with himself anymore. He missed Mitchell, missed his smile and his laugh and his always-on-point sarcasm. Right now he didn’t think he would ever see him again. He didn’t remember sitting down but suddenly he was on the ground and his vision was blurry. Nothing really mattered anymore because Mitchell was gone and Connor was alone again and everything was shit.

Connor hadn’t realized how much the other boy had anchored him during the months they had been best friends and boyfriends, but now, when he was without him, he was lost. He vaguely registered Hermes helping him get up, leading him to his car, strapping him in and driving him home.

 

\-----------------------------

 

Mitchell’s capturer had placed yet another tray of food right inside his door before Mitchell woke up. He was weary about the food, though. Without glasses he couldn’t see what he was supposed to be eating and his nose was so runny he couldn’t smell it, either. It kinda looked like scrambled eggs, but it could also be mashed potatoes or really overcooked pasta. Mitchell wasn’t about to take a chance on this. He didn’t drink what was in the glass either. He put his finger down in it and tasted it, it was some kind of juice or lemonade. As long as it wasn’t pure water, he wasn’t going to take his chances with that either.

When his capturer came in a little while later, he had a roll of duct tape with him. He taped Mitchell’s wrists together and pulled him along with him. He stood Mitchell in the hallway.

‘Wait here. Don’t move.’

Mitchell looked around. His eyes landed on the bright pink leather case he kept his phone in. The one Connor had gotten him for his birthday and which also contained his driver’s license, social security card and debit card. The only reason he could see it was because it was so fucking pink it practically glowed. Mitchell loved it, of course, and now more so than ever. He couldn’t hear the man so in a burst of courage he flipped the cover open and tapped the phone. It was turned off. Mitchell vaguely remembered something Kelly had said someday when they watched a police movie. That thing Hollywood was so fond of was right. As long as the phone was on they could track it. He pressed the little button on the side of the phone and then he flipped the cover over again, right as he heard the man coming back, praying to whatever deity he could think of that they had a trace on him.

The man took him outside. It was fairly warm since it was the middle of the day but the ground was cold and he still hadn’t been given any shoes.

‘You’re too scrawny. There’s not a muscle on you, we need to do something about that.’

You should see my abs, they’re one of my boyfriend’s biggest turn-ons, Mitchell thought but he didn’t say it out loud. Somehow he didn’t think telling this man he was gay would do him any favors. Rather the opposite, as a matter of fact.

He was given an ax and was steered towards a pile of wood.

‘Chop it. Once you’ve done that, you can have dinner. Don’t try any funny business, I will be right here watching you.’

So Mitchell went to work. Okay, so he didn’t really have that much muscle on his arms and they were aching pretty soon. The sun shining down on him didn’t help him, he was sweating really badly. Only his feet were cold. It didn’t help him at all that he found himself squinting to make out the wood he was supposed to be hitting, either. After an hour his arms and his head ached, and he wasn’t anywhere near done. Mitchell didn’t know how long he had endured for, but with the sun, the sweating, the impending migraine, his hay fever and the fact that he hadn’t eaten anything for god knew how long, he lost consciousness and fell to the ground.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M SORRY!!!!


	13. Chapter thirteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ken takes Mitchell on a hike in the rain and Connor gets to show off his Spiderman-moves.

He woke up in his room (cell?) again, having been unceremoniously dropped on the floor by one really annoyed capturer a few hours ago. His entire body ached from the workout, or the fall, or both. His hands were still taped together and the wrists were sore. The man was nowhere to be seen. Mitchell figured he must have been out for a while because the sweat had dried and he was now shaking from being cold. All he could hope for at this point was that they had realized his phone was now on and they could trace him.

Mitchell didn’t get any lunch or dinner that day. He hadn’t earned it, not that he would have touched it anyway.

 

\-----------------------------

 

Connor’s mom burst into his room without even knocking. The boy was in no mental state to even try chiding her about it, he just sat on his bed, staring into the wall and cradling his phone like a life-line.

‘They’ve found him!’ she called out.

It took Connor a few moments to even register that she was in there, let alone speaking to him. He blinked owlishly a couple of times before his mind started clawing itself out of the foggy abyss it had been drowned in for the last couple of days and he registered what she was saying.

‘Found…?’

She sat down next to him on the bed and shook his shoulders slightly to get him to come out of the stupor a little quicker.

‘They’ve found Mitchell’s phone. Somehow he’s managed to turn it on and the police have traced it to a rural area outside of town. Your dad just called. You’re not really allowed to go with them but your dad says that if you promise to behave he’s picking you up in ten minutes.’

Connor just stared at her while his foggy mind processed this. Mitchell. They had found Mitchell. His Mitchell.

‘He’s… picking me up?’

‘Yes, in ten minutes.’ She looked him over. ‘You should probably shower and change.’

Connor nodded. He took the quickest shower in his entire life, managed to dig some clothes out of the closet and was actually standing by the road eight minutes later, cursing about his father being slow.

 

\---------------------------------

 

When they came later that night, they came with siren’s blazing. Mitchell heard them from afar and he was sure that his capturer did too. He curled in on himself in his armchair, dreading what was about to happen.

Sure enough, the door was thrown open and the man came marching in. The sound of his boots echoed in the sparsely furnitured room. He grabbed Mitchell by the collar of his t-shirt and pulled him out of the chair and out the door. Mitchell hadn’t seen anything else of the house since he got there, except for the hallway, not that he saw much now without his glasses. He was being pushed through the same corridor as earlier and they stopped for a couple of moments while the man peeked out through the door.

Mitchell looked around. He couldn’t believe his luck. On the table next to him was a small, pink, rectangular object. His cell phone was _still_ lying on the same table that it had been earlier that morning. When he was fairly sure the man wasn’t looking he picked it up and slid it into his pocket, just in time before he was grabbed again and pulled out the door. The cold hit him like a punch in the face. Where it had been sunny and warm earlier that day it was now raining and the wind was howling. Mitchell was still barefoot and in nothing but his pajamas.

‘Move!’ the man growled. He had a firm grip on the back neck lining of Mitchell’s t-shirt.  

Mitchell stumbled. He was shivering from the cold and his feet was getting numb, not to mention that he couldn’t even see where he was going in the dark. Up ahead he could make out some sort of building, or so he thought, and suddenly the wind stopped pulling at him but it was still cold. He sneezed, which earned him a slap in the back of the head.

‘Be quiet! Am I gonna have to shoot you to get you to shut up?’

Mitchell briefly thought that shooting him was probably not the best of ways to shut him up but he shook his head instead and the next time his nose itched he pinched it with his fingers to quell the sneeze. Where the hell were they anyway?

He didn’t really have time to try and take in his surroundings because the man shoved him through the building and into a giant room in the back. That was where Mitchell finally tripped.

He fell face first onto the ground, his ankle made a crunching noise and the pain was excruciating. Mitchell barely had time to catch himself with his hands before his cheek hit the dirt floor. He lay there panting for a moment before his capturer pulled him to his feet. The only problem was, Mitchell couldn’t walk. As soon as he put pressure on the injured foot he screamed in agony.

‘Did you break it? You stupid, clumsy idiot of a boy,’ the man grumbled. ‘I guess I should thank god that you’re blind and won’t recognize me the next time I’m coming for you.’ Then he shoved Mitchell away from him so he fell to the ground again, before he angrily stomped off.

 

\--------------------------------

 

Mitchell didn’t know how long he lay there before he dared to move. He was trying to listen to his surroundings but everything was eerily quiet. All he could hear was the wind and the rain tapping on the roof. His heart was racing and he was having serious trouble breathing. Wait, trouble breathing. Logical thinking finally kicked in. He must be in some kind of barn or stables or something.

Mitchell reached into his pocket because by now he was fairly certain the man was really gone. His fingers recognized his cellphone. There was the little crack from when he had dropped it in the locker room once and the little sticker that looked like an owl which Connor had put on the leather case when Mitchell wasn’t looking. Mitchell had complained about it but he hadn’t even tried to take it off.

Mitchell couldn’t really see what he was doing, but he knew enough about the little piece of technology to operate it anyway. He tapped it and the screen instantly started glowing. Praying that the man hadn’t used it to call anyone he opened the phone application and then dialed the last number he had called. Connor. It seemed like days ago, and as far as Mitchell knew it probably was.

 

\------------------------------

 

At first, Connor didn’t really register that his phone rang. Yes, he had it in his hand to fiddle with because this whole thing was making him nervous. Him and his father was standing a little out of the way of the other officers as to not get in the way but now they had searched the whole house and they had come up empty.

He wasn’t even _really_ supposed to be there, as Hermes had tried telling him when they left but Hermes was well aware of his son’s stubbornness, especially when he was anxious about something so he had actually come up with the suggestion of Connor joining them himself. If they were going to save Mitchell Connor was going to be there. End of discussion. Hermes knew that neither his son nor he himself would benefit from leaving Connor behind.

Only problem was, they weren’t saving Mitchell, because they had already left.

‘They can’t be far,’ Connor heard one of the police officer’s say. They were here half an hour ago. The car is still here so they must have left on foot.’

When Connor _finally_ registered that his phone was buzzing he didn’t really believe it, because the caller ID said ‘Mitchell  <3’. He didn’t even think to answer, he just stared at it until Hermes noticed that something was wrong and looked down. Since his son wasn’t moving, he tapped the screen to answer the call and then tapped the little icon to put it on speaker.

‘Con…’ came the whispered voice of the kidnapped boy from the phone. That pulled Connor out of his stupor and he started shaking.

‘Mitch! Are you okay? Where are you?’

Hermes waved to get Sheriff Jones’ attention. When the officer came over Hermes put his finger to his lips and pointed towards the phone in his son’s hand. Jones made big eyes at it.

‘I’m… I don’t know, Con. I think he left. I… I snatched my phone when we left the house but I don’t know where I am now.’

Jones gestured for Connor to keep talking while they traced the call again. Kelly and Sandra were now clinging on to Hermes while they both watched the phone with wide eyes.

‘Are you okay, Mitch?’ Connor asked.

‘No. I think I broke my ankle, I think that’s why he left me behind. I can’t walk and I can’t see, I don’t have any glasses.’

‘We’re at his house. Me and your moms and a shitload of police officers.’

‘The officers here say we just missed you. Do you have any idea where you might be? Anything that can help them find you?’ Kelly asked.

‘Mom…’

‘We’re both here, sweetie,’ Sandra said.

They heard Mitchell sneeze before the other boy said.

‘It’s cold… I… I’m indoors somewhere but it’s as cold as outside and I’m fucking allergic to something here, if that helps you any. I don’t think we walked very far.’

Connor looked around and noticed the rundown barn at the other side of the field. He pointed urgently towards it and Kelly nodded.

‘Did you turn or did you walk straight ahead, sweetie?’ she asked.

‘Straight, I think…’

Jones immediately took a group of officers with him and left towards the barn with drawn weapons. It was just at the edge of the forest and it should have been easy enough to slip through it and into the woods.

‘We think maybe we know where you are,’ Kelly said. ‘Just hang in there, sweetie, Jones is coming to get you.’

‘Hurry, please… Con… are you still there?’

‘Yeah, baby doll, I’m here. Don’t worry, I won’t leave.’

‘I… I’m scared, Con…’

‘I know. I am too. I was so scared when I came to your house and you were gone. I was so sure I would never get to see you again, but you know what? We’re going to be fine. They’ll find you now and take you home and soon its summer and we’ll graduate and have the best summer ever and then we’re going off to college together. I love you, Mitch, you know that. Just hang in there for a couple minutes more and it’s going to be fine.’

‘I like the thought of college…’

He sounded so tired. Like he hadn’t slept in days. Connor thought that he probably hadn’t. He wouldn’t be surprised if he hadn’t eaten either. Mitchell was always _so_ weary about eating food he didn’t know the ingredients in. Connor fondly remembered the first days of the week Mitchell had stayed at their house while his room was being redecorated. He had helped Connor’s mom cook because he wanted to make sure he could eat it. This had gone on for three days until she had managed to convince him that she had things under control because she could recite off the top of her head everything he couldn’t eat.

‘I think I hear something…’ Mitchell said and then they, too, could hear the sound of boots and voices calling out, before Jones’ voice became audible through the phone.

‘We have him, Kelly.’

‘Oh, thank god,’ she said before the call ended.

Connor’s eyes darted towards the barn but Hermes grabbed him by the wrist to ground him in place.

‘They’re on their way, Con.’

He couldn’t stand still so he was jumping from foot to foot while he watched the policemen exit the barn. When they got closer he noticed that one of them was carrying a boy wrapped up in a policeman’s jacket.

When the police had laid Mitchel down on the stretcher in front of the ambulance Hermes finally released his son so he could run up to his boyfriend. Mitchell was being unceremoniously stripped of his wet clothes, wrapped in blankets and strapped into the stretcher by a paramedic while another one was examining his ankle. He was semi sitting up and Connor could take him in from the lights in the ambulance. His face was sunken in and his eyes had lost their usual spark. Connor sat down on the seat beside him and took Mitchell’s hand. He handed the other boy his spare pair of glasses which Mitchell put on. Then he gave Connor a tired smile.

‘Hey Con… You don’t look too good.’

Connor started crying and laughing at the same time. Tears were streaming down his cheeks but he didn’t even bother to try and wipe them off. Mitchell was safe, finally. Officer Jones came up to the ambulance while the boys were exchanging whispered reassurances to each other.

‘Connor, could you give us a moment?’

Mitchell glanced at his boyfriend, then he said:

‘I… I want him to stay. Please?’

Jones sighed but nodded. Mitchell’s grip on Connor’s hand hardened.

‘We’re going to have an official interview once you’re feeling better but is there something you can tell us now so we can put out a warrant for his arrest?’

‘I… I couldn’t see him. I lost my glasses somewhere and… I’m basically blind without them. If I took these off I wouldn’t be able to see your face.’

Jones nodded. He looked a little disappointed.

‘What I _can_ tell you is that he wore some kind of boots that made noise when he walked, like maybe cowboy boots. And he smelled of oil and metal. It must have been a really strong smell, too, if I was able to smell it,’ he said and sniffled. ‘Like… like a mechanic or something.’

‘Okay. Well, let us know if you remember something else. We’ll post an officer outside of your door at the hospital so you’ll be safe.’

‘Thank you.’

Jones left them alone. Mitchell looked at Connor.

‘I thought about you when I was scared. That I had to get back to you.’

Connor leaned in and kissed his boyfriend.

‘You have no idea, Mitch. I haven’t slept for these past two days you’ve been gone. My brain and I, we haven’t been friends, like, at all. I… I kept thinking what if he’s dead? What if… I can’t be without you Mitch, you’re my anchor. I wouldn’t have made it through this year if it wasn’t for you.’

‘I… I can’t be without you, either.’ Mitchell reached his hand up and stroked Connor’s cheek. ‘I love you, Con.’

‘ _I love you_.’

One of the paramedics cleared his throat so they both looked at him.

‘We need to get going. He has to get to the hospital.’

‘Yeah, of course,’ Connor said and stood up. ‘I’ll come and see you tomorrow, okay?’

Mitchell nodded, he looked a little disappointed to have to leave Connor behind but he knew the other boy wouldn’t be allowed to join him.

‘Do you have your phone?’ Connor asked.

‘Uhm, yeah.’

‘So text me when you get settled in, alright? Maybe we can talk for a little while if you get your own room?’

‘Yes, I’ll do that. Can you stay awake?’

‘Knowing me I probably won’t sleep tonight either. We’re gonna have to make up for that when you get home.’

Mitchell gave him a tired smile and Connor leaned down to kiss his forehead before he climbed out of the ambulance and went to go stand next to his dad. Hermes hugged him and said:

‘You know he’ll be okay, right?’

‘Yeah,’ Connor said. ‘Just…’ he gestured at the ambulance.

‘Yeah.’

 

\---------------------------------

 

Connor got a text a couple of hours later, just as he had flopped down on his bed after a late dinner and another shower. He hadn’t even attempted to do his homework that night. His dad had promised him that after everything that had happened he could take a few days off from school. God knew Connor needed it. If he had trouble focusing on a good day, well… he’d just as well not even bother. He looked at his phone when it buzzed.

_So apparently I’m scared of the dark now. The nurse turned off the lights and I almost had a panic attack and screamed at her for being a fucking idiot. I should probably apologize but right now I can’t really be bothered to care about her feelings._

**With everything that happened to you Id be surprised if you werent scared.**

_I guess. What bothers me is I don’t even know what this guy looks like. He could come in here and try something again and I wouldn’t know. That scares the fuck out of me._

 

An idea was forming in Connor’s mind.

**I can sneak out if you want. Come over.**

_As much as I’d love that, they have an officer posted outside my room. I doubt that he’d let you in._

**What floor are you on?**

_Third, room number 6. Please don’t climb the building to get here. But if you do, my pink_ _sweats are in your closet. These are itchy._

 

Connor tapped the window and even though Mitchell had been fairly sure that his boyfriend would not listen to him and actually _do_ scale the building he nearly jumped out of his skin at the sound. Connor grinned at him through the glass when Mitchell climbed out of bed and limping dragged his IV-stand over to the window.

‘I thought I’d told you…’ he trailed off, not really in the mood to scold Connor because he was really happy to see him. Connor kissed him on the cheek when he had climbed through.

‘Yeah, you did, and I thought you’d know better by now than to actually think I’d listen?’

‘I suppose,’ Mitchell smiled. ‘I’m really glad you’re here.’

Connor dug into his backpack and handed Mitchell the pink sweats he had brought for him and then helped the boy change into them, as well as one of Connor’s t-shirts and hoodies.

‘You brought a whole set for me?’

‘Well…’ Connor started and blushed slightly. ‘You said the hospital sweats were itchy so I got worried that you were maybe allergic to the laundry detergent or something so...’ He shrugged. Mitchell gave him a quick peck on the lips which only made him even more flustered.

‘Thank you. You’re amazing.’ Mitchell climbed back into bed and gestured for Connor to get in on the other side. He did. Mitchell settled his head on Connor’s chest.

‘How bad off are you if they have to give you an IV?’

‘Just dehydrated. I haven’t been eating or drinking anything these past days. I didn’t have my meds and I was scared that I might need them if I did eat and it turned out there was something I was allergic to. Anyway, I doubt he would have given them to me even if they hadn’t been left at home. He kept saying that he was going to make a man out of me, that living with two moms had made me weak and that’s why I’m so sickly.’

‘Yes, because your moms are _so_ weak.’

‘I don’t think he’s met them lately. Imagine what he would have thought about my manliness if he’d known I’m gay, too.’

‘Yikes, you’re right. I’m _very_ glad you’re gay, though.’

Mitchell smirked.

‘Of course you are.’

‘How’s the ankle?’

‘It was just a sprain, it’s not broken. Thank god. I wouldn’t have wanted to spend my entire summer in a cast.’

‘That’s great news because I have some really god places to show you where one can skinny dip without having to worry about being caught.’

‘Do you now? What are you going to do with me when we’re done skinny dipping?’

Connor smirked.

‘You’ll see. That is not a conversation that is in any way appropriate for a hospital bed.’

Mitchell laughed. It felt good to finally be safe in his boyfriend’s arms. Connor actually yawned before he asked:

‘So do you want me to stay the night?’

‘Could you? I don’t think I can sleep without you here.’

‘I’ll stay as long as you want me to. They’ll have to literally throw me out in the morning.’

‘Thanks Con.’

Mitchell nuzzled his head into Connor’s chest and Connor put his arm around Mitchell’s shoulders. They fell asleep like that, both of them exhausted.

Connor didn’t sleep for very long though. His mind was still on edge so he was woken up by someone entering the room. He opened his eyes and saw a nurse walking up to the bed. Now they were done for. The nurse was surely going to get him thrown out. Connor pretended to be asleep so the nurse couldn’t address him. Happily the nurse didn’t. He could hear the nurse walk around the bed to where Mitchell was sleeping and starting to do something to his IV. Connor blinked a couple of times and his eyes came to focus on the male nurse. He had long hair, like a biker, and… Connor almost, _almost_ flinched.

Those were fucking cowboy boots.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaaand they're not out of the woods yet, people! Only one last chapter now. How will this end?


	14. Chapter fourteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mitchell gets a present and Connor gets an honorary task. Poor, poor Connor.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter OMG!

Now, Connor’s brain didn’t work like a normal brain on a good day, and now he had had three bad days in a row, without sleep in between. Maybe _that’s_ why he was so damn perceptive and maybe _that’s_ why he noticed the supposed nurse was wearing cowboy boots.

That _may also_ have been why he grabbed the tray on the table beside him and hit the guy in the back of the head instead of doing the sensible thing and scream for help. That may also have been what saved Mitchell because when the guy fell to the floor, taking the heart rate monitor with him in a loud bang, a syringe fell out of his hand. It skidded across the floor and only stopped when it hit the wall next to the door.

Mitchell woke up by the sound of the guy and the machinery crashing to the ground at the same moment as the policeman posted outside the room came barging in with his gun drawn. He noticed Connor standing over the man on the ground, his weapon of choice lifted and ready for another hit and Mitchell sitting up in bed, hyperventilating. Connor instantly started yelling.

‘What kind of a fucking police officer are you who lets fucking anyone in without fucking looking at them?’

Those were more curse words in one sentence than Mitchell had ever heard his boyfriend say combined in all the months they’ve known each other. He managed to get his breathing somewhat under control and peeked over the bedframe and really took in the guy laying there, knocked out cold. He was familiar. Mitchell took his glasses off and realized it was most likely the same blurred figure he had been looking at for days.

‘That’s him,’ he said to the officer who wasted no time in handcuffing the man and calling it in. Soon enough the room was flooded with officers and Connor had some real explaining to do.

Hermes didn’t even look surprised that his son was there. He didn’t even comment on the fact that Connor should be home in bed instead of assaulting convicted felons with food trays in hospital rooms. How had he even gotten in there? Hermes knew better at this point than to ask questions he didn’t want to know the answers for. Especially since he wasn’t stupid and kind of figured his son had parkoured his way up three stories on the plain outside wall of a hospital.

 

\----------------------------

 

Mitchell had been allowed to go home after a couple of days under observation, but he still wasn’t fully recovered so his moms were adamant that he stayed in bed. He had to use crutches to get around with his heavily sprained ankle and being outside in the rain without clothes on had earned him a rather nasty cold. Connor had been busy giving his statements down at the precinct and his parents wanted him around so they could keep an eye on him in case he collapsed from the pressure.

They finally allowed Mitchell out on a sunny day to watch the last game of the season being payed. At first he was kind of grumpy that he wasn’t able to play but he was allowed to join them in the locker room before the game so they could all ask their questions about what had happened and he sat on the bench with the coach the entire game, cheering on his team and his boyfriend. There was a lot of hugging and he got slapped on the back a lot from well-meaning team mates.

Connor came over to Mitchell’s house that afternoon after the game. Mitchell’s moms had dragged him home right after because after all he still had a cold and he needed to rest. When they were finally allowed to spend time together again both boys were so starved for each other’s attention that it wasn’t even funny. Connor had bought them a gallon of ice cream and he had gotten Mitchell grapes, which he for some reason craved whenever he got sick. Connor didn’t get it but he wasn’t about to question it.

Sandra opened the door when he knocked at it. When she saw who it was she squealed and pulled him into a hug.

‘Connor! I’ve missed you! We all have. Come in, sweetie. Do you want anything? Mitchell’s in the kitchen.’

Her reaction was far from what Connor had thought she thought of him a couple of weeks ago when they had been sitting down in this kitchen last. Back when he was so sure that Mitchell’s moms were done with the two of them dating. In his mind, Connor still couldn’t fathom why they seemed to love that he was dating their son but now he had decided that he wasn’t going to question it anymore.

Mitchell was sitting at the table eating toast and drinking tea. He smiled when Connor entered and placed a kiss on the top of his head. When he sat down next to his boyfriend Sandra placed a teacup in front of him. There hadn’t been much time to talk at the game so now Connor stroke Mitchell’s cheek and said:

‘I’ve missed you. How are you feeling?’

Mitchell’s voice was still hoarse when he answered:

‘I still can’t put any pressure on my foot and I’m still coughing, obviously, but otherwise this cold seems to be getting better.’ He sighed and took a sip from his cup. ‘All things considered though, if just a cold and a sprained ankle is what I’m getting away from this with I consider myself to be lucky.’

‘You should,’ Connor said. ‘Oh, I got a present for you.’

‘Yeah? From who?’

‘Grandma. Here.’

Connor pulled out a long knitted scarf out of his bag and handed it to Mitchell.

‘I may have let slipped that you had a cold and in old lady logic she firmly believed that if you had been wearing a scarf you would never have gotten sick to begin with, never mind the being without shoes in the rain thing, so she made you this.’

The thing was longer than Mitchell was tall and he seriously wondered how Mrs. Stoll had managed to do this in like, four days.

‘Are these the gay pride colors?’ Mitchell asked, knowing damn well they were. He was just curious whether it was just a stroke of luck from Mrs. Stoll or if it was deliberate.

‘Yes. She was _very_ proud about that. Proud, hah, get it?’ Mitchell fondly rolled his eyes and smiled while Connor continued: ‘Apparently she had forced some poor orderly at the old folks home to print her a picture of the flag so she could buy the right colored yarn and she had taken that picture with her to the store. Imagine that conversation: “Hi, I’d like to buy some yarn because I’m knitting my gay grandson’s boyfriend a scarf. Here, I brought a picture.”’

Mitchell giggled.

‘God I love your grandmother.’ He had wrapped the scarf around his neck and burrowed his face in it.

‘She’s quite something.’

‘I need to call her and say thank you, as soon as my voice returns, and visit her when I get well enough.’

‘She is long overdue for a proper visit. I just swung by real quick to pick this up on my way here. We can go together when you’re feeling better. Maybe take her out for coffee and let her feed the ducks or something.’

‘It’s a date.’

Connor kissed him on the cheek.

‘Of course it is.’

 

\--------------------------

 

The four of them were standing behind the stage. Connor was shaking, he was so nervous his entire body was literally shaking. Mitchell was hugging him tightly, trying to coax him out of the impending panic attack. Will was stroking his back and Cecil was just standing there, looking out of place and feeling seriously uncomfortable, holding Connor’s hat for him until he was done freaking out.

‘I never thought I’d actually have to do this,’ Connor whispered into Mitchell’s neck with a shaky voice. ‘Who does this? Why did I say yes? Why, Mitch? Am I an idiot? I’m an idiot. There’s no other explanation. I’m an idiot.’

‘You agreed because it’s an honor and a privilege, darling. I know you’re scared but you’ll do fine. I promise.’

‘What if I black out? What if… what if I go non-verbal? What if…’

‘You’re a fucking hero, Con. You can do anything and I know you’ll do amazing. Look, you know where my seat is and if you get nervous just look at me, okay, look at me and forget everyone else. You’re just talking to me. It’s just us.’

The vice-principal came to check on them and upon seeing Connor and the state he was in, he frowned.

‘Is he going to be able to do this?’ he asked Mitchell.

‘Yeah, in a minute.’

‘Then you guys need to get to your seats.’

‘Yes, sir. Thank you.’ Mitchell gently pushed Connor off of him and looked into his eyes. ‘Listen. It’s just you and me, alright? Just you and me. Remember that if you freak out.’

‘Just you and me.’

‘And I’ll cheer for you as loud as I can when you’re done. Louder than anyone else.’

Connor sighed. Mitchell noticed the tiny spark in his eyes that told him Connor would be fine.

Will, Cecil and Mitchell went to their seats just in time to hear the principle announce:

‘And now we’d like to welcome this year’s valedictorian speaker. Normally the title goes to the student with the highest grades as we are well aware of. This student, however, has done great deeds that we as a faculty feel we need to applaud. He has done amazing things this year included, but not limited to setting a groundbreaking new record in number of scored goals during a single soccer season. He has also managed to graduate with higher grades than anyone thought possible. He saved a life. I give you all Half-Blood high’s very own, Mr. Connor Stoll!’

Everyone was clapping. Somewhere in the crowd someone, probably Travis, was wolf-whistling. He had taken the red-eye flight after his last test that college semester just to be able to see his brother speak.

Mitchell smiled when Connor entered and settled behind the podium on the stage. His eyes scanned the crowd for a couple of seconds before he found Mitchell and smiled at him. When the clapping died down, he said:

‘Thank you Principal Harley. Yeah, so this was _not_ something I’d ever thought I’d get the privilege to do. When this school year started, I thought I would maybe be able to scrape up good enough grades to get to keep my scholarship for college. _Maybe_. Now, I’ve graduated with an average of B- which for me is better than I ever thought possible, and apparently,’ he said with a look and a smirk at the principal, ‘my teachers too. Those of you who know me know schoolwork isn’t one of my better qualities. Uhm… For those of you who _don’t_ know me I was diagnosed with ADHD with severe hyperactivity when I was seven. By the time I was nine I got diagnosed with dyslexia as well. I can barely spell and I never remember if my own last name has one or two l’s in it.’

Connor paused because someone in the audience yelled out ‘two’. He chuckled before he continued:

‘Thank you. I’ll write that down. Oh, wait, never mind.’ He paused and smiled while people laughed at the joke.

‘Remember back when we were young and you could get a point on your test for spelling your name right because that way _everyone_ got at least _one_ point, right? Yeah, never happened. It hasn’t been easy, I can tell you that much,’ he deadpanned, but he smiled while doing it.

People laughed, which gave Connor some time to collect himself. He had stopped shaking now, Mitchell noted with satisfaction.

‘While we’re on the subject of life not being easy, let’s add my sexuality to that list, because someone, somewhere thought it’d be funny to give me gay as well as ADHD and dyslexia. For five years I was the only openly gay guy in this school. I’ve been spit on, beat up and bullied because of it. For the longest time, I only had two friends, and one of them is my cousin so he didn’t really have much of a choice. Hi, Cecil!’ Connor said and waved to him.

Next to Mitchell, Cecil blushed and waved back.

‘He’s doing surprisingly well,’ Will whispered across Cecil who was sitting between them. Mitchell smiled and nodded.

‘Someone asked me once, how can you know you’re gay when you’re young and living in a small town like this and you haven’t really seen the “real” world. Well, you _can_ realize you’re not really attracted to the girls in school, but that’s no help because you’re not really attracted to the boys either. Then you can start surfing the web and realize you’re not attracted to _any_ girls but _boy are there pretty guys out there_! The internet is a great thing, you should look it up.’

People were laughing really hard by now. Connor was smiling and he seemed to be genuinely relaxed by now. He was really growing into this.

‘I’d like to thank my parents, of course, they’ve been great. Not just about the gay thing, I mean, school too. The poor people have two sons with the same diagnoses to various degrees and despite everything, they’ve always given me and my brother anything we needed. They’ve gone to meetings with teachers, doctors, therapists and principals like it’s a normal thing and for them it is. They’ve never questioned my special needs, they just rolled with the punches and for that I am truly grateful. I always will be. Mom, dad, I love you guys so much you have no idea. I hope I can be half as good a parent as you two someday.’

Beside Kelly Hermes was crying and whispering: ‘That’s my boy. That’s my boy,’ over and over again. She hugged him tightly. Andrea had her head resting on his shoulder. Travis was crying too, crying and smiling. He didn’t even try to hide it. Sandra thought it was cute how proud he was of his little brother.

‘I want to thank my friends, everyone on the team and my coach next,’ Connor continued. ‘Principal Harley said that I set a groundbreaking new record in goals scored this season and there’s a billboard by the interstate with my face on it to prove it. Thirty-two, huh? How about that? However, that’s not something one does by themselves. This brings me to the last person I’d like to thank. I’ve had the privilege of playing this season with the best game director I’ve ever met behind me. He has an eye for the game that no one I’ve met can rival. You’ve seen us play together, it’s like magic. This is the same person who’s responsible for my good grades. He’s been tutoring me on the field and off. I can’t even remember all the countless nights we’ve spent studying for tests and composed written assignments together. Not even once has he complained when I’ve asked him to repeat something for the fifteenth time because I’ve zoned out or when he’s had to correct the same spelling mistake four sentences in a row. He doesn’t seem to be able to grow tired of me. I can’t fathom why.’ He paused for a few seconds before continuing: ‘Okay, so _maybe_ it has something to do with me literally saving his life, but I’m only guessing here. Thank god for allergies, huh?’

People laughed again. Connor once more found Mitchell’s eyes in the crowd and smiled at him. Mitchell smiled back. How could he not? He was so fucking proud of Connor he had no idea.

‘So, last but definitely not least, I’d like to thank my boyfriend. Mitchell, you’re my star and my anchor and had I been religious I would’ve thanked god for sending you my way but as it is, I guess I have to thank your moms for that.’

Kelly and Sandra laughed. They both had tears in their eyes at this point.

‘I love you Mitch. I love you for being you, for your foul mouth and witty sarcasm. I love you for everything you’ve done for me, for everything you’re always doing and for keeping me going this year. When the stress of schoolwork and the looming threat of college got the better of my disabilities you kept me grounded and refused to let me give in like I wanted to so many times. I wouldn’t have been standing here if it wasn’t for you.’

Mitchell had started crying halfway through Connor’s last passage. Will handed him a tissue so he could blow his nose and wipe the runny mascara off his cheeks.

‘All in all people, life isn’t fair. It isn’t easy and it never will be, but guess what? It’s worth it. And with that I leave you. Go have your parties. You’ve earned them. Go get drunk, if that’s your thing. Go kiss that girl, boy or whatever person of yours. I know I will. Go!’ Connor yelled and with those last words hidden glitter canons erupted, showering the spectators in rainbow colored glitter. All thanks to Travis, of course. People were clapping and when Mitchell stood up doing it, everyone followed. Connor ran down from the stage and tried to get to him so Cecil urged him through the row and out on the walkway. Connor threw his arms around his waist and kissed him in front of the whole school, parents, student, teachers and administration. Everyone watched as two boys made out covered in pride colored glitter. A lot of them were filming. Sandra had filmed his entire speech and she continued to film while they made out on the walkway while the speaker system had started playing ‘Come what may’ from Moulin Rouge. Probably also thanks to Travis. The boy had a soft spot for dramatics.

 

**EPILOGUE**

Connor was lying on his back on a blanket. The sun was shining down on him, making his reddish brown hair seem almost a chocolate-y copper color. He had gained even more freckles during the summer, something Mitchell had hardly thought possible. They were splashed across his cheeks, nose and forehead, the back of his neck, his shoulders and arms as well as his back.

Mitchell supported his chin in his hand and studied his sleeping boyfriend. His slips were slightly parted and a little swollen from their heated kissing an hour earlier. He also had two purple hickies on his neck. Mitchell had hickies as well. One on the collarbone and one on his hip. Mitchell reached out and traced the outlines of Connor’s abs lightly with his finger. It made something twinge in his lower abdomen and he drew in a deep breath. Connor squirmed underneath his finger.

‘Tickles,’ he mumbled.

‘Sorry,’ Mitchell said but neither looked, nor felt, sorry. ‘Were you sleeping?’

‘Yeah. Our prior activities usually make me sleepy.’

‘Fucking or swimming?’

Connor opened his eyes and looked at Mitchell who marveled in the sky-blue he saw in there.

‘ _Making love_ , baby doll. Fucking sounds dirty.’

Mitchell chuckled.

‘I think I’ve found the magic cure for your insomnia.’

Connor closed his eyes and rolled onto his side so he was facing his boyfriend. The fact that he was completely naked and his dick was now pressed against Mitchell’s hip did nothing to quell the feeling pooling in Mitchell.

‘I think _you’re_ the magic cure for my insomnia.’

‘Be that as it may,’ Mitchell said, ‘I’m sorry I woke you up.’

‘No, you’re not,’ Connor said and smiled. Mitchell smiled too.

‘No, I’m not.’

Mitchell realized he was lying on his own erection and shifted so he was on his side, too. Connor’s eyes opened again and flitted down to Mitchell’s mid-section. His pupils instantly dilated. His lazy smile turned into a knowing grin as he reached down and took Mitchell’s member in his hand. Mitchell really didn’t mind, the reason he had woken Connor up was solely so they could have another go before they had to go home and pack for their move tomorrow. NYU was waiting for them.

Mitchell rolled onto his back so Connor would have easier access to where he wanted to touch him and Connor followed him so he was straddling Mitchell. HE reached down and pinned Mitchell’s arms above his head.

‘This the reason you woke me up?’

‘Maybe.’

Connor leaned down and kissed him.

‘This the reason you woke me up?’

‘Definitely.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There, finished. Fourteen weeks and finished. I'm amazed at myself for keeping this up. Thank you to everyone who's read it, you guys are the bomb.

**Author's Note:**

> So, first chapter of my mortal au posted. Let me know what you think! Comments and kudos are my lifeblood so hit me up!


End file.
